Obstruction detection in air traffic control systems for passenger drones

ABSTRACT

Obstruction detection and management systems and methods include, in an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system including one or more servers communicatively coupled to a plurality of passenger drones via one or more wireless networks, receiving passenger drone data from a plurality of passenger drones, wherein the passenger drone data comprises operational data for the plurality of passenger drones and obstruction data from one or more passenger drones; updating an obstruction database based on the obstruction data, wherein the obstruction database comprises entries of obstructions with their height, size, location, and a permanency flag comprising either a temporary obstruction or a permanent obstruction; monitoring a flight plan for the plurality of passenger drones based on the operational data; and transmitting obstruction instructions to the plurality of passenger drones based on analyzing the obstruction database with their flight plan.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

The present patent/application is continuation-in-part of, and thecontent of each is incorporated by reference herein

Filing Date Ser. No. Title Jun. 17, 2019 16/442,597 Flying lanemanagement systems and methods for passenger drones May 21, 201916/417,805 Air traffic control of passenger drones concurrently using aplurality of wireless networks Nov. 16, 2018 16/193,053 Systems andmethods for air traffic control for passenger drones Oct. 9, 201816/155,354 Systems and methods for drone air traffic control utilizinggeographic boundaries for management Aug. 10, 2018 16/100,571 Drone AirTraffic Control incorporating weather updates Jun. 6, 2018 16/000,950Flying Lane Management with Lateral Separations between Drones May 22,2018 15/985,996 Drone collision avoidance via Air Traffic Control overwireless networks Nov. 1, 2017 15/800,574 Elevator or tube lift fordrone takeoff and control thereof via air traffic control systems Oct.31, 2016 15/338,559 Waypoint directory in air traffic control systemsfor unmanned aerial vehicles Oct. 13, 2016 15/292,782 Managing dynamicobstructions in air traffic control systems for unmanned aerial vehiclesSep. 19, 2016 15/268,831 Managing detected obstructions in air trafficcontrol systems for unmanned aerial vehicles Sep. 2, 2016 15/255,672Obstruction detection in air traffic control systems for unmanned aerialvehicles Jul. 22, 2016 15/217,135 Flying lane management systems andmethods for unmanned aerial vehicles Aug. 23, 2016 15/244,023 Airtraffic control monitoring systems and methods for unmanned aerialvehicles Jun. 27, 2016 15/193,488 Air traffic control of unmanned aerialvehicles for delivery applications Jun. 17, 2016 15/185,598 Air trafficcontrol of unmanned aerial vehicles concurrently using a plurality ofwireless networks Jun. 10, 2016 15/179,188 Air traffic control ofunmanned aerial vehicles via wireless networks

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to drones and specifically airtraffic control. More particularly, the present disclosure relates toobstruction detection in air traffic control systems for passengerdrones.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Use of drones is proliferating. Drones are used for a variety ofapplications such as search and rescue, inspections, security,surveillance, scientific research, aerial photography and video,surveying, cargo delivery, and the like. Further, drones can be used forpersonal transportation, i.e., manned drones. With the proliferation,the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is providing regulationsassociated with the use of drones. Existing air traffic control in theUnited States is performed through a dedicated air traffic controlnetwork, i.e., the National Airspace System (NAS). However, it isimpractical to use the existing air traffic control network for dronesbecause of the sheer quantity of drones. Also, it is expected that somedrones be autonomous, requiring communication for flight control aswell. There will be a need for systems and methods to provide airtraffic control and communication to drones.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is illustrated and described herein withreference to the various drawings, in which like reference numbers areused to denote like system components/method steps, as appropriate, andin which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a side view of an example cell site;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a UAV for use with the systems andmethods described herein;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a mobile device, which may be embedded orassociated with the UAV of FIG. 1 ;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a server which may be used for air trafficcontrol of UAVs;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of functional components of a UAV air trafficcontrol system;

FIG. 6 is a diagram of various cell sites deployed in a geographicregion;

FIG. 7 is a map of three cell towers and associated coverage areas fordescribing location determination of the UAV;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control method utilizingwireless networks;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control method concurrentlyutilizing a plurality of wireless networks;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a package delivery authorization andmanagement method utilizing the UAV air traffic control system of FIG. 5;

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a flight path of an associated flying lane of aUAV from takeoff to landing;

FIG. 12 is a diagram of obstruction detection by the UAV and associatedchanges to the flying lane;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a flying lane management method via an airtraffic control system communicatively coupled to a UAV via one or morewireless networks;

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of functional components of a consolidatedUAV air traffic control monitoring system;

FIG. 15 is a screenshot of a Graphical User Interface (GUI) providing aview of the consolidated UAV air traffic control monitoring system;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control and monitor method;

FIGS. 17 and 18 are block diagrams of the UAV air traffic control systemdescribing functionality associated with obstruction detection,identification, and management with FIG. 17 describing data transferfrom the UAVs to the servers and FIG. 18 describing data transfer to theUAVs from the servers;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart of an obstruction detection and management methodimplemented through the UAV air traffic control system for the UAVs;

FIG. 20 is a diagram of geographical terrain with static obstructions;

FIG. 21 is diagrams of data structures which can be used to define theexact location of any of the static obstructions;

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of a static obstruction detection and managementmethod through an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system for Unmanned AerialVehicles (UAVs);

FIG. 23 is a block diagram of functional components implemented inphysical components in the UAV for use with the air traffic controlsystem, such as for dynamic and static obstruction detection;

FIG. 24 is a flowchart of a UAV method for obstruction detection;

FIG. 25 is a flowchart of a waypoint management method for an AirTraffic Control (ATC) system for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs);

FIG. 26 is a flowchart of a UAV network switchover and emergencyprocedure method;

FIG. 27 is a diagram of a lift tube and a staging location;

FIG. 28 is a diagram of the lift tube in a location such as a factory,warehouse, distribution center, etc.;

FIG. 29 is a diagram of a pneumatic lift tube;

FIG. 30 is a diagram of an elevator lift tube;

FIG. 31 is a flowchart of a modified inevitable collision state methodfor collision avoidance of drones;

FIG. 32 is a flowchart of a flying lane management method;

FIG. 33 is a diagram of a drone delivery system using the ATC system;

FIG. 34 is a flowchart of Drone Air Traffic Control (ATC) method overwireless networks for package pickup and delivery;

FIG. 35 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control management methodwhich provides real-time course corrections and route optimizationsbased on weather information;

FIG. 36 is a flowchart of a process for dynamic flying lane management,such as based in part on FAA input, policies, and standards;

FIG. 37 is a map of north Charlotte illustrating zip codes;

FIG. 38 is a flowchart of a process for drone air traffic control viamultiple ATC system utilizing zip codes or the like as geographicboundaries;

FIG. 39 is a flowchart of an air traffic control method for passengerdrones; and

FIG. 40 is a flowchart of an air traffic control method, implemented ina passenger drone during a flight, for concurrently utilizing aplurality wireless networks for air traffic control.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for air trafficcontrol for passenger drones. Various techniques are described hereinfor drone Air Traffic Control (ATC) with respect to Unmanned AerialVehicles (UAVs). The present disclosure extends these techniques tomanned aerial vehicles, passenger drones, pilotless helicopters, etc.,collectively referred to herein as passenger drones. That is, thevarious descriptions herein relative to UAVs are equally applicable topassenger drones.

In another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to dynamic flyinglane management systems and methods for drone air traffic control.Flying lanes are geographical paths for drone flight and are created,managed, and assigned by a Drone Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. In anembodiment, the flying lanes are based on Federal AviationAdministration (FAA) input, policies, and standards. The flying lanesare dynamically managed and modified based on the FAA input, other airtraffic, weather, obstructions, and the like. An ATC system can beconfigured to route UAVs to and from flying lanes including based ondynamically changing flying lanes.

In another embodiment, multiple ATC systems can manage UAVs over ageographic region with existing wireless networks providing connectivityto the UAVs. For example, the boundaries can be based on Zip codeboundaries or some other existing boundary. The multiple ATC systems canmanage UAVs in their region based on these boundaries, coordinate UAVtraffic between regions, provide redundant coverage for adjacentregions, etc. Also, with the boundaries, the ATC systems can develop,manage, and integrate flying lanes with the boundaries.

Further, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods for DroneAir Traffic Control (ATC) over wireless networks for package pickup anddelivery. Embodiments describe drone service delivery using the ATC overwireless networks. A drone delivery service can manage delivery for avariety of providers enabling drone delivery for smaller providers.Further, the ATC system can be used to schedule, manage, and coordinatepickup, distribution, delivery, and returns.

Further, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods forflying lane management with lateral separation between drones. Thisdisclosure relates to lateral separations between drones (UAV's)operating in the same flying lane or at the same altitude and in thesame proximity or geography. Further, the present disclosure relates tosystems and methods for drone collision avoidance via an Air TrafficControl System over wireless networks. Specifically, the systems andmethods include a modified Inevitable Collision State (ICS) for UAV ordrone Air Traffic Control (ATC). A traditional ICS states that no matterwhat the future trajectory is, a collision with an obstacle eventuallyoccurs. The modified ICS described herein considers various variables todetermine if there is a possibility for a future collision. This enablespredictions of collision and an ability to react/redirect drones awayfrom areas and objects which could be the cause of a collision.

Further, the present disclosure relates to an elevator or tube lift fordrone takeoff and for control thereof via an Air Traffic Control (ATC)system. Specifically, the elevator or tube lift contemplates location ina factory, warehouse, distribution center, etc. such that UAVs can beloaded with products or delivery items and then take off from anelevated position or rooftop without an individual carrying the UAV tothe roof or outside.

Further, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods for dronenetwork switchover between wireless networks such as during outages,failures, catastrophes, etc. As described herein, an Air Traffic Control(ATC) system can be used to control UAVs or drones with communicationvia existing wireless networks. The UAVs can be configured tocommunicate on multiple different wireless networks, such as a primaryand a backup network. The systems and methods herein provide techniquesfor the switchover from one network to another under certaincircumstances. Additionally, emergency instructions can be provided tothe UAVs in case of network disturbances, e.g., in the event the UAVcannot reestablish communication with the ATC system.

Further, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods for witha waypoint directory in air traffic control systems for UAVs. A waypointis a reference point in physical space used for purposes of navigationin the air traffic control systems for UAVs. Variously, the systems andmethods describe managing waypoints by an air traffic control systemwhich uses one or more wireless networks and by associated UAVs incommunication with the air traffic control system. The waypoints can bedefined based on the geography, e.g., different sizes for dense urbanareas, suburban metro areas, and rural areas. The air traffic controlsystem can maintain the status of each waypoint, e.g., clear,obstructed, or unknown. The status can be continually updated andmanaged with the UAVs and used for routing the UAVs.

Further, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods formanaging detected obstructions with air traffic control systems forUAVs. Variously, the systems and methods provide a mechanism in the AirTraffic Control (ATC) System to characterize detected obstructions at ornear the ground. In an embodiment, the detected obstructions are dynamicobstructions, i.e., moving at or near the ground. Examples of dynamicobstructions can include, without limitation, other UAVs, vehicles onthe ground, cranes on the ground, and the like. Generally, dynamicobstruction management includes managing other UAVs at or near theground and managing objects on the ground which are moving, which couldeither interfere with a landing or with low-flying UAVs. In variousembodiment, the UAVs are equipped to locally detect and identify dynamicobstructions for avoidance thereof and to notify the ATC system formanagement thereof.

Further, the detected obstructions are static obstructions, i.e., notmoving, which can be temporary or permanent. The ATC system canimplement a mechanism to accurately define the location of the detectedobstructions, for example, a virtual rectangle, cylinder, etc. definedby location coordinates and altitude. The defined location can bemanaged and determined between the ATC system and the UAVs as well ascommunicated to the UAVs for flight avoidance. That is, the definedlocation can be a “no-fly” zone for the UAVs. Importantly, the definedlocation can be precise since it is expected there are a significantnumber of obstructions at or near the ground, and the UAVs need tocoordinate their flight to avoid these obstructions. In this manner, thesystems and methods seek to minimize the no-fly zones.

Further, the present disclosure relates to obstruction detection systemsand methods with air traffic control systems for UAVs. Specifically, thesystems and methods use a framework of an air traffic control systemwhich uses wireless (cell) networks to communicate with various UAVs.Through such communication, the air traffic control system receivescontinuous updates related to existing obstructions whether temporary orpermanent, maintains a database of present obstructions, and updates thevarious UAVs with associated obstructions in their flight plan. Thesystems and methods can further direct UAVs to investigate, capturedata, and provide such data for analysis to detect and identifyobstructions for addition in the database. The systems and methods canmake use of the vast data collection equipment on UAVs, such as cameras,radar, etc. to properly identify and classify obstructions.

Further, the present disclosure relates to air traffic controlmonitoring systems and methods for UAVs. Conventional FAA Air TrafficControl monitoring approaches are able to track and monitor allairplanes flying in the U.S. concurrently. Such approaches do not scalewith UAVs, which can exceed airplanes in numbers by several orders ofmagnitude. The systems and methods provide a hierarchical monitoringapproach where zones or geographic regions of coverage are aggregatedinto a consolidated view for monitoring and control. The zones orgeographic regions can provide local monitoring and control while theconsolidated view can provide national monitoring and control inaddition to local monitoring and control through a drill-down process. Aconsolidated server can aggregate data from various sources of controlfor zones or geographic regions. From this consolidated server,monitoring and control can be performed for any UAV communicativelycoupled to a wireless network.

Further, flying lane management systems and methods are described forUAVs such as through an air traffic control system that uses one or morewireless networks. As described herein, a flying lane for a UAVrepresents its path from takeoff to landing at a certain time. Theobjective of flying lane management is to prevent collisions,congestion, etc. with UAVs in flight. A flying lane can be modeled as avector which includes coordinates and altitude (i.e., x, y, and zcoordinates) at a specified time. The flying lane also can include speedand heading such that the future location can be determined. The flyinglane management systems utilize one or more wireless networks to manageUAVs in various applications.

Note, flying lanes for UAVs have significant differences fromconventional air traffic control flying lanes for aircraft (i.e.,commercial airliners). First, there will be orders of magnitude moreUAVs in flight than aircraft. This creates a management and scale issue.Second, air traffic control for UAVs is slightly different than aircraftin that collision avoidance is paramount in aircraft; while stillimportant for UAVs, the objective does not have to be collisionavoidance at all costs. It is further noted that this ties into thescale issue where the system for managing UAVs will have to manage somany more UAVs. Collision avoidance in UAVs is about avoiding propertydamage in the air (deliveries and the UAVs) and on the ground; collisionavoidance in commercial aircraft is about safety. Third, UAVs are flyingat different altitudes, much closer to the ground, i.e., there may bemany more ground-based obstructions. Fourth, UAVs do not have designatedtakeoff/landing spots, i.e., airports, causing the different flightphases to be intertwined more, again adding to more managementcomplexity.

To address these differences, the flying lane management systems andmethods provide an autonomous/semi-autonomous management system, usingone or more wireless networks, to control and manage UAVs in flight, inall phases of a flying plane and adaptable based on continuous feedbackand ever-changing conditions. Additionally, the present disclosurerelates to integrating real-time weather information into flying lanemanagement.

Also, the present disclosure relates to air traffic control of UAVs indelivery applications, i.e., using the drones to deliver packages, etc.to end users. Specifically, an air traffic control system utilizesexisting wireless networks, such as wireless networks including wirelessprovider networks, i.e., cell networks, using Long Term Evolution (LTE)or the like, to provide air traffic control of UAVs. Also, the cellnetworks can be used in combination with other networks such as the NASnetwork or the like. Advantageously, cell networks providehigh-bandwidth connectivity, low-cost connectivity, and broad geographiccoverage. The air traffic control of the UAVs can include, for example,separation assurance between UAVs; navigation assistance; weather andobstacle reporting; monitoring of speed, altitude, location, direction,etc.; traffic management; landing services; and real-time control. TheUAV is equipped with a mobile device, such as an embedded mobile deviceor physical hardware, emulating a mobile device. In an embodiment, theUAV can be equipped with hardware to support plural cell networks, toallow for broad coverage support. In another embodiment, UAV flightplans can be constrained based on the availability of wireless cellcoverage. In a further embodiment, the air traffic control can useplural wireless networks for different purposes such as using the NASnetwork for location and traffic management and using the cell networkfor the other functions.

The present disclosure leverages the existing wireless networks toaddress various issues associated with specific UAV applications such asdelivery and to address the vast number of UAVs concurrently expected inflight relative to air traffic control. In an embodiment, in addition toair traffic control, the air traffic control system also supportspackage delivery authorization and management, landing authorization andmanagement, separation assurance through altitude and flying lanecoordination, and the like. Thus, the air traffic control system,leveraging existing wireless networks, can also provideapplication-specific support.

Cell Site

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a side view of a cell site 10. The cell site 10includes a cell tower 12. The cell tower 12 can be any type of elevatedstructure, such as 100-200 feet/30-60 meters tall. Generally, the celltower 12 is an elevated structure for holding cell site components 14.The cell tower 12 may also include a lightning rod 16 and a warninglight 18. Of course, there may various additional components associatedwith the cell tower 12 and the cell site 10, which are omitted forillustration purposes. In this embodiment, there are four sets 20, 22,24, 26 of cell site components 14, such as for four different wirelessservice providers. In this example, the sets 20, 22, 24 include variousantennas 30 for cellular service. The sets 20, 22, 24 are deployed insectors, e.g., there can be three sectors for the cell sitecomponents—alpha, beta, and gamma. The antennas 30 are used to bothtransmit a radio signal to a mobile device and receive the signal fromthe mobile device. The antennas 30 are usually deployed as a single,groups of two, three, or even four per sector. The higher the frequencyof spectrum supported by the antenna 30, the shorter the antenna 30. Forexample, the antennas 30 may operate around 850 MHz, 1.9 GHz, and thelike. The set 26 includes a microwave dish 32 which can be used toprovide other types of wireless connectivity, besides cellular service.There may be other embodiments where the cell tower 12 is omitted andreplaced with other types of elevated structures such as roofs, watertanks, etc.

FAA Regulations

The FAA is overwhelmed with applications from companies interested inflying drones, but the FAA is intent on keeping the skies safe.Currently, approved exemptions for flying drones include tight rules.Once approved, there is some level of certification for drone operatorsalong with specific rules such as speed limit of 100 mph, heightlimitations such as 400 ft, no-fly zones, only day operation,documentation, and restrictions on aerial filming. It is expected thatthese regulations will loosen as UAV deployments evolve. However, it isexpected that the UAV regulations will require flight which wouldaccommodate wireless connectivity to cell towers 12, e.g., less than afew hundred feet.

Example Hardware

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an example UAV 50 for use with thesystems and methods described herein. Again, the UAV 50 may be referredto as a drone or the like. The UAV 50 may be a commercially availableUAV platform that has been modified to carry specific electroniccomponents as described herein to implement the various systems andmethods. The UAV 50 includes rotors 80 attached to a body 82. A lowerframe 84 is located on a bottom portion of the body 82, for landing theUAV 50 to rest on a flat surface and absorb impact during landing. TheUAV 50 also includes a camera 86 which is used to take stillphotographs, video, and the like. Specifically, the camera 86 is used toprovide a real-time display on the screen. The UAV 50 includes variouselectronic components inside the body 82 and/or the camera 86 such as,without limitation, a processor, a data store, memory, a wirelessinterface, and the like. Also, the UAV 50 can include additionalhardware, such as robotic arms or the like that allow the UAV 50 toattach/detach components for the cell site components 14. Specifically,it is expected that the UAV 50 will get bigger and more advanced,capable of carrying significant loads, and not just a wireless camera.

These various components are now described with reference to a mobiledevice 100 or a processing device 100. Those of ordinary skill in theart will recognize the UAV 50 can include similar components to themobile device 100. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 can include one or moremobile devices 100 embedded therein, such as for different cellularnetworks. In another embodiment, the UAV 50 can include hardware whichemulates the mobile device 100, including support for multiple differentcellular networks. For example, the hardware can include multipledifferent antennas and unique identifier configurations (e.g.,Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) cards). For example, the UAV 50can include circuitry to communicate with one or more LTE networks withan associated unique identifier, e.g., serial number.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of mobile device 100 hardware, which may beembedded or associated with the UAV 50. The mobile device 100 can be adigital device that, in terms of hardware architecture, generallyincludes a processor 102, input/output (I/O) interfaces 104, wirelessinterfaces 106, a data store 108, and memory 110. It should beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that FIG. 3 depictsthe mobile device 100 in an oversimplified manner, and a practicalembodiment may include additional components and suitably configuredprocessing logic to support known or conventional operating featuresthat are not described in detail herein. The components (102, 104, 106,108, and 102) are communicatively coupled via a local interface 112. Thelocal interface 112 can be, for example, but not limited to, one or morebuses or other wired or wireless connections, as is known in the art.The local interface 112 can have additional elements, which are omittedfor simplicity, such as controllers, buffers (caches), drivers,repeaters, and receivers, among many others, to enable communications.Further, the local interface 112 may include address, control, and/ordata connections to enable appropriate communications among theaforementioned components.

The processor 102 is a hardware device for executing softwareinstructions. The processor 102 can be any custom made or commerciallyavailable processor, a central processing unit (CPU), an auxiliaryprocessor among several processors associated with the mobile device100, a semiconductor-based microprocessor (in the form of a microchip orchip set), or generally any device for executing software instructions.When the mobile device 100 is in operation, the processor 102 isconfigured to execute software stored within the memory 110, tocommunicate data to and from the memory 110, and to generally controloperations of the mobile device 100 pursuant to the softwareinstructions. In an embodiment, the processor 102 may include amobile-optimized processor such as optimized for power consumption andmobile applications. The I/O interfaces 104 can be used to receive userinput from and/or for providing system output. User input can beprovided via, for example, a keypad, a touch screen, a scroll ball, ascroll bar, buttons, barcode scanner, and the like. System output can beprovided via a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD),touch screen, and the like. The I/O interfaces 104 can also include, forexample, a serial port, a parallel port, a small computer systeminterface (SCSI), an infrared (IR) interface, a radio frequency (RF)interface, a universal serial bus (USB) interface, and the like. The I/Ointerfaces 104 can include a graphical user interface (GUI) that enablesa user to interact with the mobile device 100. Additionally, the I/Ointerfaces 104 may further include an imaging device, i.e., camera,video camera, etc.

The wireless interfaces 106 enable wireless communication to an externalaccess device or network. Any number of suitable wireless datacommunication protocols, techniques, or methodologies can be supportedby the wireless interfaces 106, including, without limitation: RF; IrDA(infrared); Bluetooth; ZigBee (and other variants of the IEEE 802.15protocol); IEEE 802.11 (any variation); IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX or any othervariation); Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum; Frequency Hopping SpreadSpectrum; Long Term Evolution (LTE); cellular/wireless/cordlesstelecommunication protocols (e.g. 3G/4G, etc.); wireless home networkcommunication protocols; paging network protocols; magnetic induction;satellite data communication protocols; wireless hospital or health carefacility network protocols such as those operating in the WMTS bands;GPRS; proprietary wireless data communication protocols such as variantsof Wireless USB; and any other protocols for wireless communication. Thewireless interfaces 106 can be used to communicate with the UAV 50 forcommand and control as well as to relay data. Again, the wirelessinterfaces 106 can be configured to communicate on a specific cellnetwork or on a plurality of cellular networks. The wireless interfaces106 include hardware, wireless antennas, etc. enabling the UAV 50 tocommunicate concurrently with a plurality of wireless networks, such ascellular networks, GPS, GLONASS, WLAN, WiMAX, or the like.

The data store 108 may be used to store data. The data store 108 mayinclude any of volatile memory elements (e.g., random access memory(RAM, such as DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, and the like)), nonvolatile memoryelements (e.g., ROM, hard drive, tape, CDROM, and the like), andcombinations thereof. Moreover, the data store 108 may incorporateelectronic, magnetic, optical, and/or other types of storage media. Thememory 110 may include any of volatile memory elements (e.g., randomaccess memory (RAM, such as DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, etc.)), nonvolatilememory elements (e.g., ROM, hard drive, etc.), and combinations thereof.Moreover, the memory 110 may incorporate electronic, magnetic, optical,and/or other types of storage media. Note that the memory 110 may have adistributed architecture, where various components are situated remotelyfrom one another but can be accessed by the processor 102. The softwarein memory 110 can include one or more software programs, each of whichincludes an ordered listing of executable instructions for implementinglogical functions. In the example of FIG. 3 , the software in the memory110 includes a suitable operating system (O/S) 114 and programs 116. Theoperating system 114 essentially controls the execution of othercomputer programs and provides scheduling, input-output control, fileand data management, memory management, and communication control andrelated services. The programs 116 may include various applications,add-ons, etc. configured to provide end-user functionality with themobile device 100, including performing various aspects of the systemsand methods described herein.

It will be appreciated that some embodiments described herein mayinclude one or more generic or specialized processors (“one or moreprocessors”) such as microprocessors; Central Processing Units (CPUs);Digital Signal Processors (DSPs): customized processors such as NetworkProcessors (NPs) or Network Processing Units (NPUs), Graphics ProcessingUnits (GPUs), or the like; Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs); andthe like along with unique stored program instructions (including bothsoftware and firmware) for control thereof to implement, in conjunctionwith certain non-processor circuits, some, most, or all of the functionsof the methods and/or systems described herein. Alternatively, some orall functions may be implemented by a state machine that has no storedprogram instructions, or in one or more Application Specific IntegratedCircuits (ASICs), in which each function or some combinations of certainof the functions are implemented as custom logic or circuitry. Ofcourse, a combination of the aforementioned approaches may be used. Forsome of the embodiments described herein, a corresponding device inhardware and optionally with software, firmware, and a combinationthereof can be referred to as “circuitry configured or adapted to,”“logic configured or adapted to,” etc. perform a set of operations,steps, methods, processes, algorithms, functions, techniques, etc. ondigital and/or analog signals as described herein for the variousembodiments.

Moreover, some embodiments may include a non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium having computer readable code storedthereon for programming a computer, server, appliance, device,processor, circuit, etc. each of which may include a processor toperform functions as described and claimed herein. Examples of suchcomputer-readable storage mediums include, but are not limited to, ahard disk, an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, a ROM(Read Only Memory), a PROM (Programmable Read Only Memory), an EPROM(Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), an EEPROM (ElectricallyErasable Programmable Read Only Memory), Flash memory, and the like.When stored in the non-transitory computer-readable medium, software caninclude instructions executable by a processor or device (e.g., any typeof programmable circuitry or logic) that, in response to such execution,cause a processor or the device to perform a set of operations, steps,methods, processes, algorithms, functions, techniques, etc. as describedherein for the various embodiments.

Example Server

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a server 200 which may be used for airtraffic control of the UAVs 50. The server 200 may be a digital computerthat, in terms of hardware architecture, generally includes a processor202, input/output (I/O) interfaces 204, a network interface 206, a datastore 208, and memory 210. It should be appreciated by those of ordinaryskill in the art that FIG. 4 depicts the server 200 in an oversimplifiedmanner, and a practical embodiment may include additional components andsuitably configured processing logic to support known or conventionaloperating features that are not described in detail herein. Thecomponents (202, 204, 206, 208, and 210) are communicatively coupled viaa local interface 212. The local interface 212 may be, for example, butnot limited to, one or more buses or other wired or wirelessconnections, as is known in the art. The local interface 212 may haveadditional elements, which are omitted for simplicity, such ascontrollers, buffers (caches), drivers, repeaters, and receivers, amongmany others, to enable communications. Further, the local interface 212may include address, control, and/or data connections to enableappropriate communications among the aforementioned components.

The processor 202 is a hardware device for executing softwareinstructions. The processor 202 may be any custom made or commerciallyavailable processor, a central processing unit (CPU), an auxiliaryprocessor among several processors associated with the server 200, asemiconductor-based microprocessor (in the form of a microchip or chipset), or generally any device for executing software instructions. Whenthe server 200 is in operation, the processor 202 is configured toexecute software stored within the memory 210, to communicate data toand from the memory 210, and to generally control operations of theserver 200 pursuant to the software instructions. The I/O interfaces 204may be used to receive user input from and/or for providing systemoutput to one or more devices or components. User input may be providedvia, for example, a keyboard, touchpad, and/or a mouse. System outputmay be provided via a display device and a printer (not shown). I/Ointerfaces 204 may include, for example, a serial port, a parallel port,a small computer system interface (SCSI), a serial ATA (SATA), a fibrechannel, Infiniband, iSCSI, a PCI Express interface (PCI-x), an infrared(IR) interface, a radio frequency (RF) interface, and/or a universalserial bus (USB) interface.

The network interface 206 may be used to enable the server 200 tocommunicate over a network, such as to a plurality of UAVs 50 over acell network or the like. The network interface 206 may include, forexample, an Ethernet card or adapter (e.g., 10BaseT, Fast Ethernet,Gigabit Ethernet, 10 GbE) or a wireless local area network (WLAN) cardor adapter (e.g., 802.11a/b/g/n). The network interface 206 may includeaddress, control, and/or data connections to enable appropriatecommunications on the network. A data store 208 may be used to storedata. The data store 208 may include any of volatile memory elements(e.g., random access memory (RAM, such as DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, and thelike)), nonvolatile memory elements (e.g., ROM, hard drive, tape, CDROM,and the like), and combinations thereof. Moreover, the data store 208may incorporate electronic, magnetic, optical, and/or other types ofstorage media. In one example, the data store 208 may be locatedinternal to the server 200 such as, for example, an internal hard driveconnected to the local interface 212 in the server 200. Additionally, inanother embodiment, the data store 208 may be located external to theserver 200 such as, for example, an external hard drive connected to theI/O interfaces 204 (e.g., SCSI or USB connection). In a furtherembodiment, the data store 208 may be connected to the server 200through a network, such as, for example, a network attached file server.

The memory 210 may include any of volatile memory elements (e.g., randomaccess memory (RAM, such as DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, etc.)), nonvolatilememory elements (e.g., ROM, hard drive, tape, CDROM, etc.), andcombinations thereof. Moreover, the memory 210 may incorporateelectronic, magnetic, optical, and/or other types of storage media. Notethat the memory 210 may have a distributed architecture, where variouscomponents are situated remotely from one another but can be accessed bythe processor 202. The software in memory 210 may include one or moresoftware programs, each of which includes an ordered listing ofexecutable instructions for implementing logical functions. The softwarein the memory 210 includes a suitable operating system (O/S) 214 and oneor more programs 216. The operating system 214 essentially controls theexecution of other computer programs, such as the one or more programs216, and provides scheduling, input-output control, file and datamanagement, memory management, and communication control and relatedservices. The one or more programs 216 may be configured to implementthe various processes, algorithms, methods, techniques, etc. describedherein.

UAV Air Traffic Control system

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of functional components of a UAV air trafficcontrol system 300. The UAV air traffic control system 300 includes acell network 302 and optionally other wireless networks 304communicatively coupled to one or more servers 200 and to a plurality ofUAVs 50. The cell network 302 can actually include a plurality ofdifferent provider networks, such as AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc. Thecell network 302 is formed in part with a plurality of cell towers 12,geographically dispersed and covering the vast majority of the UnitedStates. The cell towers 12 are configured to backhaul communicationsfrom subscribers. In the UAV air traffic control system 300, thesubscribers are the UAVs 50 (in addition to conventional mobiledevices), and the communications are between the UAVs 50 and the servers200. The other wireless networks 304 can include, for example, the NASnetwork, GPS and/or GLONASS, WLAN networks, private wireless networks,or any other wireless networks.

The servers 200 are configured to provide air traffic control and can bedeployed in a control center, at a customer premises, in the cloud, orthe like. Generally, the servers 200 are configured to receivecommunications from the UAVs 50 such as for continuous monitoring and ofrelevant details of each UAV 50 such as location, altitude, speed,direction, function, etc. The servers 200 are further configured totransmit communications to the UAVs 50 such as for control based on thedetails, such as to prevent collisions, to enforce policies, to providenavigational control, to actually fly the UAVs 50, to land the UAVs 50,and the like. That is, generally, communications from the UAV 50 to theserver 200 are for detailed monitoring, and communications to the UAV 50from the server 200 are for control thereof.

Data Management

Each UAV 50 is configured with a unique identifier, such as a SIM cardor the like. Similar to standard mobile devices 100, each UAV 50 isconfigured to maintain an association with a plurality of cell towers 12based on a current geographic location. Using triangulation or otherlocation identification techniques (GPS, GLONASS, etc.), the location,altitude, speed, and direction of each UAV 50 can be continuouslymonitored and reported back to the servers 200. The servers 200 canimplement techniques to manage this data in real-time in an automatedfashion to track and control all UAVs 50 in a geographic region. Forexample, the servers 200 can manage and store the data in the data store208.

Air Traffic Control Functions

The servers 200 are configured to perform air traffic controlfunctionality of the UAV air traffic control system 300. Specifically,the servers 200 are configured to perform separation assurance,navigation, traffic management, landing, and general control of the UAVs50. The separation assurance includes tracking all of the UAVs 50 inflight, based on the monitored data, to ensure adequate separation. Thenavigation includes maintaining defined airways. The traffic managementincludes comparing flights plan of UAVs 50 to avoid conflicts and toensure the smooth and efficient flow of UAVs 50 in flight. The landingincludes assisting and control of UAVs 50 at the end of their flight.The general control includes providing real-time data including videoand other monitored data and allowing control of the UAV 50 in flight.The general control can also include automated flight of the UAVs 50through the UAV air traffic control system 300, such as for autonomousUAVs. Generally, the UAV air traffic control system 300 can includerouting and algorithms for autonomous operation of the UAVs 50 based oninitial flight parameters. The UAV air traffic control system 300 cancontrol speed, flight path, and altitude for a vast number of UAVs 50simultaneously.

UAV Flight Plans

FIG. 6 is a network diagram of various cell sites 10 a-10 e deployed ina geographic region 400. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 is configured tofly a flight plan 402 in the geographic region 400 while maintainingassociations with multiple cell sites 10 a-10 e during the flight plan402. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 is constrained only to fly in thegeographic region 400 where it has cell coverage. This constraint can bepreprogrammed based on predetermining cell coverage. Alternatively, theconstraint can be dynamically managed by the UAV 50 based on monitoringits cell signal level in the mobile device 100 hardware. Here, the UAV50 will alter its path whenever it loses or detects signal degradationto ensure it is always active on the cell network 302. During the flightplan 402, the cell sites 10 a-10 e are configured to report monitoreddata to the servers 200 periodically to enable real-time air trafficcontrol. Thus, the communication between the UAVs 50 is bidirectionalwith the servers 200, through the associated cell sites 10.

In an embodiment, the UAV 50 maintains an association with at leastthree of the cell sites 10 which perform triangulation to determine thelocation of the UAV 50. In addition to the cell sites 10 on the cellnetwork 302, the UAV 50 can also communicate to the other wirelessnetworks 304. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 can maintain its GPS and/orGLONASS location and report that over the cell network 302. In anotherembodiment, the other wireless networks 304 can include satellitenetworks or the like.

Triangulation

FIG. 7 is a map of three cell towers 12 and associated coverage areas410, 412, 414 for describing location determination of the UAV 50.Typically, for a cell site 10, in rural locations, the coverage areas410, 412, 414 can be about 5 miles in radius whereas, in urbanlocations, the coverage areas 410, 412, 414 can be about 0.5 to 2 milesin radius. One aspect of the UAV air traffic control system 300 is tomaintain a precise location at all time of the UAVs 50. This can beaccomplished in a plurality of ways, including a combination. The UAVair traffic control system 300 can use triangulation based on themultiple cell towers 12, location identifiers from GPS/GLONASStransmitted over the cell network by the UAVs 50, sensors in the UAV 50for determining altitude, speed, etc., and the like.

UAV Air Traffic Control Method Utilizing Wireless Networks

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control method 450 utilizingwireless networks. The UAV air traffic control method 450 includescommunicating with a plurality of UAVs via a plurality of cell towersassociated with the wireless networks, wherein the plurality of UAVseach include hardware and antennas adapted to communicate to theplurality of cell towers, and wherein each of the plurality of UAVsinclude a unique identifier (step 452); maintaining data associated withflight of each of the plurality of UAVs based on the communicating (step454); and processing the maintained data to perform a plurality offunctions associated with air traffic control of the plurality of UAVs(step 456). The UAV-based method 450 can further include transmittingdata based on the processing to one or more of the plurality of UAVs toperform the plurality of functions (step 458). The plurality of UAVs canbe configured to constrain flight based on coverage of the plurality ofcell towers. The constrained flight can include one or more ofpre-configuring the plurality of UAVs to operate only where the coverageexists, monitoring cell signal strength by the plurality of UAVs andadjusting flight based therein, and a combination thereof.

The maintaining data can include the plurality of UAVs and/or theplurality of cell towers providing location, speed, direction, andaltitude. The location can be determined based on a combination oftriangulation by the plurality of cell towers and a determination by theUAV based on a location identification network. The plurality offunction can include one or more of separation assurance between UAVs;navigation assistance; weather and obstacle reporting; monitoring ofspeed, altitude, location, and direction; traffic management; landingservices; and real-time control. One or more of the plurality of UAVscan be configured for autonomous operation through the air trafficcontrol. The plurality of UAVs can be configured with mobile devicehardware configured to operate on a plurality of different cellularnetworks.

UAV Air Traffic Control Method Concurrently Utilizing a Plurality ofWireless Networks

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) air trafficcontrol method 500 implemented in the UAV 50 during a flight, forconcurrently utilizing a plurality wireless networks for air trafficcontrol. The UAV air traffic control method 500 includes maintainingcommunication with a first wireless network and a second wirelessnetwork of the plurality of wireless networks (step 502); communicatingfirst data with the first wireless network and second data with thesecond wireless network throughout the flight, wherein one or more ofthe first data and the second data is provided to an air traffic controlsystem configured to maintain status of a plurality of UAVs in flightand perform control thereof (step 504); and adjusting the flight basedon one or more of the first data and the second data and control fromthe air traffic control system (step 506). The first wireless networkcan provide bi-directional communication between the UAV and the airtraffic control system and the second wireless network can supportunidirectional communication to the UAV for status indications. Thefirst wireless network can include one or more cellular networks, andthe second wireless network can include a location identificationnetwork. Both the first wireless network and the second wireless networkcan provide bi-directional communication between the UAV and the airtraffic control system for redundancy with one of the first wirelessnetwork and the second wireless network operating as primary and anotheras a backup. The first wireless network can provide bi-directionalcommunication between the UAV and the air traffic control system and thesecond wireless network can support unidirectional communication fromthe UAV for status indications.

The UAV air traffic control method can further include constraining theflight based on coverage of one or more of the first wireless networkand the second wireless network (step 508). The constrained flight caninclude one or more of pre-configuring the UAV to operate only where thecoverage exists, monitoring cell signal strength by the UAV andadjusting flight based therein, and a combination thereof. The firstdata can include location, speed, direction, and altitude for reportingto the air traffic control system. The control from the air trafficcontrol system can include a plurality of functions comprising one ormore of separation assurance between UAVs; navigation assistance;weather and obstacle reporting; monitoring of speed, altitude, location,and direction; traffic management; landing services; and real-timecontrol. The UAV can be configured for autonomous operation through theair traffic control system.

In another embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) adapted for airtraffic control via an air traffic control system and via communicationto a plurality of wireless networks includes one or more rotors disposedto a body; wireless interfaces including hardware and antennas adaptedto communicate with a first wireless network and a second wirelessnetwork of the plurality of wireless networks, and wherein the UAVcomprises a unique identifier; a processor coupled to the wirelessinterfaces and the one or more rotors; and memory storing instructionsthat, when executed, cause the processor to: maintain communication withthe first wireless network and the second wireless network via thewireless interfaces; communicate first data with the first wirelessnetwork and second data with the second wireless network throughout theflight, wherein one or more of the first data and the second data isprovided to an air traffic control system configured to maintain statusof a plurality of UAVs in flight and perform control thereof; and adjustthe flight based on one or more of the first data and the second dataand control from the air traffic control system. The first wirelessnetwork can provide bi-directional communication between the UAV and theair traffic control system and the second wireless network can supportunidirectional communication to the UAV for status indications. Thefirst wireless network can include one or more cellular networks, andthe second wireless network can include a location identificationnetwork. Both the first wireless network and the second wireless networkcan provide bi-directional communication between the UAV and the airtraffic control system for redundancy with one of the first wirelessnetwork and the second wireless network operating as primary and anotheras a backup.

The first wireless network can provide bi-directional communicationbetween the UAV and the air traffic control system and the secondwireless network can support unidirectional communication from the UAVfor status indications. The UAV can be configured to constrain theflight based on coverage of one or more of the first wireless networkand the second wireless network. The constrained flight can include oneor more of pre-configuring the UAV to operate only where the coverageexists, monitoring cell signal strength by the UAV and adjusting flightbased therein, and a combination thereof. The first data can includelocation, speed, direction, and altitude for reporting to the airtraffic control system. The control from the air traffic control systemcan include a plurality of functions comprising one or more ofseparation assurance between UAVs; navigation assistance; weather andobstacle reporting; monitoring of speed, altitude, location, anddirection; traffic management; landing services; and real-time control.The UAV can be configured for autonomous operation through the airtraffic control system.

Package Delivery Authorization and Management

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a package delivery authorization andmanagement method 600 utilizing the UAV air traffic control system 300.The method 600 includes communicating with a plurality of UAVs via aplurality of cell towers associated with the wireless networks, whereinthe plurality of UAVs each comprise hardware and antennas adapted tocommunicate to the plurality of cell towers (step 602); maintaining dataassociated with flight of each of the plurality of UAVs based on thecommunicating (step 604); processing the maintained data to perform aplurality of functions associated with air traffic control of theplurality of UAVs (step 606); and processing the maintained data toperform a plurality of functions for the delivery applicationauthorization and management for each of the plurality of UAVs (step608). The maintained data can include location information received andupdated periodically from each of the plurality of UAVs, and wherein thelocation information is correlated to coordinates and altitude. Thelocation information can be determined based on a combination oftriangulation by the plurality of cell towers and a determination by theUAV based on a location identification network. The processing for thedelivery application authorization and management can include checkingthe coordinates and the altitude based on a flight plan, for each of theplurality of UAVs. The checking the coordinates and the altitude canfurther include assuring each of the plurality of UAVs is in a specifiedflying lane.

The maintained data can include current battery and/or fuel status foreach of the plurality of UAVs, and wherein the processing for thedelivery application authorization and management can include checkingthe current battery and/or fuel status to ensure sufficiency to providea current delivery, for each of the plurality of UAVs. The maintaineddata can include photographs and/or video of a delivery location, andwherein the processing for the delivery application authorization andmanagement can include checking the delivery location is clear forlanding and/or dropping a package, for each of the plurality of UAVs.The maintained data can include photographs and/or video of a deliverylocation, and wherein the processing for the delivery applicationauthorization and management comprises, for each of the plurality ofUAVs, checking the delivery location for a delivery technique includingone of landing, dropping via a tether, dropping to a doorstep, droppingto a mailbox, dropping to a porch, and dropping to a garage. Theplurality of UAVs can be configured to constrain flight based oncoverage of the plurality of cell towers. The constrained flight caninclude one or more of pre-configuring the plurality of UAVs to operateonly where the coverage exists, monitoring cell signal strength by theplurality of UAVs and adjusting flight based therein, and a combinationthereof.

Package Delivery Authorization and Management Via the Air TrafficControl System

In another embodiment, the air traffic control system 300 utilizingwireless networks and concurrently supporting delivery applicationauthorization and management includes the processor and the networkinterface communicatively coupled to one another; and the memory storinginstructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: communicate,via the network interface, with a plurality of UAVs via a plurality ofcell towers associated with the wireless networks, wherein the pluralityof UAVs each include hardware and antennas adapted to communicate to theplurality of cell towers; maintain data associated with flight of eachof the plurality of UAVs based on the communicating; process themaintained data to perform a plurality of functions associated with airtraffic control of the plurality of UAVs; and process the maintaineddata to perform a plurality of functions for the delivery applicationauthorization and management for each of the plurality of UAVs.

Landing Authorization and Management

In another aspect, the air traffic control system 300 can be configuredto provide landing authorization and management in addition to theaforementioned air traffic control functions and package deliveryauthorization and management. The landing authorization and managementcan be at the home base of the UAV, at a delivery location, and/or at apickup location. The air traffic control system 300 can control andapprove the landing. For example, the air traffic control system 300 canreceive photographs and/or video from the UAV 50 of the location (homebase, delivery location, pickup location). The air traffic controlsystem 300 can make a determination based on the photographs and/orvideo, as well as other parameters such as wind speed, temperature, etc.to approve the landing.

Separation Assurance Via the Air Traffic Control System

In another aspect, the air traffic control system 300 can be used to forseparation assurance through altitude and flying lane coordination inaddition to the aforementioned air traffic control functions, packagedelivery authorization, and management, landing authorization andmanagement, etc. As the air traffic control system 300 has monitoreddata from various UAVs 50, the air traffic control system 300 can keeptrack of specific flight plans as well as cause changes in real time toensure specific altitude and vector headings, i.e., a flight lane. Forexample, the air traffic control system 300 can include specificgeography of interest, and there can be adjacent air traffic controlsystems 300 that communicate to one another and share some overlap inthe geography for handoffs. The air traffic control systems 300 can makeassumptions on future flight behavior based on the current data and thendirect UAVs 50 based thereon. The air traffic control system 300 canalso communicate with commercial aviation air traffic control systemsfor limited data exchange to ensure the UAVs 50 does not interfere withcommercial aircraft or fly in no-fly zones.

Flying Lane Management

FIG. 11 is a diagram of a flight path of an associated flying lane 700of a UAV 50 from takeoff to landing. The flying lane 700 covers allflight phases, which include preflight, takeoff, en route, descent, andlanding. Again, the flying lane 700 includes coordinates (e.g., GPS,etc.), altitude, speed, and heading at a specified time. As describedherein, the UAV 50 is configured to communicate to the air trafficcontrol system 300, during all of the flight phases, such as via thenetworks 302, 304. The air traffic control system 300 is configured tomonitor and manage/control the flying lane 700 as described herein. Theobjective of this management is to avoid collisions, avoid obstructions,avoid flight in restricted areas or areas with no network 302, 304coverage, etc.

During preflight, the UAV 50 is configured to communicate with the airtraffic control system 300 for approvals (e.g., flight plan,destination, the flying lane 700, etc.) and notification thereof, forverification (e.g., weather, delivery authorization, etc.), and thelike. The key aspect of the communication during the preflight is forthe air traffic control system 300 to become aware of the flying lane700, to ensure it is open, and to approve the UAV 50 for takeoff. Otheraspects of the preflight can include the air traffic control system 300coordinating the delivery, coordinating with other systems, etc. Basedon the communication from the UAV 50 (as well as an operator, scheduler,etc.), the air traffic control system 300 can perform processing to makesure the flying lane 700 is available and if not, to adjust accordingly.

During takeoff, the UAV 50 is configured to communicate with the airtraffic control system 300 for providing feedback from the UAV 50 to theair traffic control system 300. Here, the air traffic control system 300can store and process the feedback to keep up to date with the currentsituation in airspace under control, for planning other flying lanes700, etc. The feedback can include speed, altitude, heading, etc. aswell as other pertinent data such as location (e.g., GPS, etc.),temperature, humidity, the wind, and any detected obstructions duringtakeoff. The detected obstructions can be managed by the air trafficcontrol system 300 as described herein, i.e., temporary obstructions,permanent obstructions, etc.

Once airborne, the UAV is en route to the destination and the airtraffic control system 300 is configured to communicate with the airtraffic control system 300 for providing feedback from the UAV 50 to theair traffic control system 300. Similar to takeoff, the communicationcan include the same feedback. Also, the communication can include anupdate to the flying lane 700 based on current conditions, changes, etc.A key aspect is the UAV 50 is continually in data communication with theair traffic control system 300 via the networks 302, 304.

As the destination is approached, the air traffic control system 300 canauthorize/instruct the UAV 50 to begin the descent. Alternatively, theair traffic control system 300 can pre-authorize based on reaching a setpoint. Similar to takeoff and en route, the communication in the descentcan include the same feedback. The feedback can also include informationabout the landing spot as well as processing by the air traffic controlsystem 300 to change any aspects of the landing based on the feedback.Note, the landing can include a physical landing or hovering andreleasing cargo.

In various embodiments, the air traffic control system 300 is expectedto operate autonomously or semi-autonomously, i.e., there is not a livehuman operator monitoring each UAV 50 flight. This is an importantdistinction between conventional air traffic control for aircraft andthe air traffic control system 300 for UAVs 50. Specifically, it wouldnot be feasible to manage UAVs 50 with live operators. Accordingly, theair traffic control system 300 is configured to communicate and manageduring all flight phases with a large quantity of UAVs 50 concurrentlyin an automated manner.

In an embodiment, the objective of the flying lane management throughthe air traffic control system 300 is to manage deliveries efficientlywhile secondarily to ensure collision avoidance. Again, this aspect isdifferent from conventional air traffic control, which focuses first andforemost of collision avoidance. This is not to say that collisionavoidance is minimized, but rather it is less important since the UAVs50 can themselves maintain a buffer from one another based on thein-flight detection. To achieve the management, the air traffic controlsystem 300 can implement various routing techniques to allows the UAVs50 to use associated flying lanes 700 to arrive and deliver packages.Thus, one aspect of flying lane management, especially for deliveryapplications, is efficiency since efficient routing can save time, fuel,etc. which is key for deliveries.

FIG. 12 is a diagram of obstruction detection by the UAV 50 andassociated changes to the flying lane 700. One aspect of flying lanemanagement is detected by obstruction management. Here, the UAV 50 hastaken off, have the flying lane 700, and is in communication with theair traffic control system 300. During the flight, either the UAV 50detects an obstacle 710 or the air traffic control system 300 isnotified from another source of the obstacle 710 and alerts the UAV 50.Again, the UAVs 50 are flying at lower altitudes, and the obstacle 710can be virtually anything that is temporary such as a crane, a vehicle,etc. or that is permanent such as a building, tree, etc. The UAV 50 isconfigured, with assistance and control from the air traffic controlsystem 300 to adjust the flying lane 700 to overcome the obstacle 710 aswell as add a buffer amount, such as 35 feet or any other amount forsafety.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a flying lane management method 750 via an airtraffic control system communicatively coupled to a UAV via one or morewireless networks. In an embodiment, the flying lane management method750 includes initiating communication to the one or more UAVs at apreflight stage for each, wherein the communication is via one or morecell towers associated with the one or more wireless networks, whereinthe plurality of UAVs each include hardware and antennas adapted tocommunicate to the plurality of cell towers (step 752); determining aflying lane for the one or more UAVs based on a destination, current airtraffic in a region under management of the air traffic control system,and based on detected obstructions in the region (step 754); andproviding the flying lane to the one or more UAVs are an approval totake off and fly along the flying lane (step 756). The flying lanemanagement method 750 can further include continuing the communicationduring flight on the flying lane and receiving data from the one or moreUAVs, wherein the data includes feedback during the flight (step 758);and utilizing the feedback to update the flying lane, to update otherflying lanes, and to manage air traffic in the region (step 760). Duringthe flight, the feedback includes speed, altitude, and heading, and thefeedback can further include one or more of temperature, humidity, wind,and detected obstructions.

The flying lane management method 750 can further include providingupdates to the flying lane based on the feedback and based on feedbackfrom other devices. The flying lane management method 750 can furtherinclude, based on the feedback, determining the one or more UAVs atready to descend or fly to the destination and providing authorizationto the one or more UAVs for a descent. The flying lane management method750 can further include, based on the feedback, detecting a newobstruction; and one of updating the flying lane based on adjustmentsmade by the one or more UAVs due to the new obstruction and providing anupdated flying lane due to the new obstruction. The adjustments and/orthe updated flying lane can include a buffer distance from the newobstruction. The new obstruction can be detected by the one or more UAVsbased on hardware thereon and communicated to the air traffic controlsystem. The air traffic control system can be adapted to operateautonomously.

In another embodiment, an air traffic control system communicativelycoupled to one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) via one or morewireless networks adapted to perform flying lane management includes anetwork interface and one or more processors communicatively coupled toone another; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, causethe one or more processors to: initiate communication to the one or moreUAVs at a preflight stage for each, wherein the communication is via oneor more cell towers associated with the one or more wireless networks,wherein the plurality of UAVs each include hardware and antennas adaptedto communicate to the plurality of cell towers; determine a flying lanefor the one or more UAVs based on a destination, current air traffic ina region under management of the air traffic control system, and basedon detected obstructions in the region; and provide the flying lane tothe one or more UAVs are an approval to take off and fly along theflying lane. The instructions, when executed, can further cause the oneor more processors to: continue the communication during flight on theflying lane and receiving data from the one or more UAVs, wherein thedata include feedback during the flight; and utilize the feedback toupdate the flying lane, to update other flying lanes, and to manage airtraffic in the region.

During the flight, the feedback includes speed, altitude, and heading,and the feedback can further include one or more of temperature,humidity, wind, and detected obstructions. The instructions, whenexecuted, can further cause the one or more processors to: provideupdates to the flying lane based on the feedback and based on feedbackfrom other devices. The instructions, when executed, can further causethe one or more processors to based on the feedback, determine the oneor more UAVs at ready to descend or fly to the destination and providingauthorization to the one or more UAVs for a descent. The instructions,when executed, can further cause the one or more processors to based onthe feedback, detect a new obstruction; and one of update the flyinglane based on adjustments made by the one or more UAVs due to the newobstruction and provide an updated flying lane due to the newobstruction. The adjustments and/or the updated flying lane can includea buffer distance from the new obstruction. The new obstruction can bedetected by the one or more UAVs based on hardware thereon andcommunicated to the air traffic control system. The air traffic controlsystem can be adapted to operate autonomously.

Air Traffic Control Monitoring Systems and Methods

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of functional components of a consolidatedUAV air traffic control monitoring system 300A. The monitoring system300A is similar to the UAV air traffic control system 300 describedherein. Specifically, the monitoring system 300A includes the cellnetwork 302 (or multiple cell networks 302) as well as the otherwireless networks 304. The one or more servers 200 are communicativelycoupled to the networks 302, 304 in a similar manner as in the UAV airtraffic control system 300 as well as the UAVs 50 communication with theservers 200. Additionally, the monitoring system 300A includes one ormore consolidated servers 200A, which are communicatively coupled to theservers 200.

The consolidated servers 200A are configured to obtain a consolidatedview of all of the UAVs 50. Specifically, the UAVs 50 are geographicallydistributed as are the networks 302, 304. The servers 200 providegeographic or zone coverage. For example, the servers 200 may besegmented along geographic boundaries, such as different cities, states,etc. The consolidated servers 200A are configured to provide a view ofall of the servers 200 and their associated geographic or zone coverage.Specifically, the consolidated servers 200A can be located in a nationalAir Traffic Control center. From the consolidated servers 200A, any airtraffic control functions can be accomplished for the UAVs 50. Theconsolidated servers 200A can aggregate data on all of the UAVs 50 basedon multiple sources, i.e., the servers 200, and from multiple networks302, 304.

Thus, from the consolidated servers 200A, UAV traffic can be managedfrom a single point. The consolidated servers 200A can perform any ofthe air traffic control functions that the servers 200 can perform. Forexample, the consolidated servers 200A can be used to eliminateaccidents, minimize delay and congestion, etc. The consolidate servers200A can handle connectivity with hundreds or thousands of the servers200 to manage millions or multiple millions of UAVs 50. Additionally,the consolidated servers 200A can provide an efficient Graphical UserInterface (GUI) for air traffic control.

FIG. 15 is a screenshot of a Graphical User Interface (GUI) providing aview of the consolidated UAV air traffic control monitoring system.Specifically, the GUI can be provided by the consolidated servers 200Ato provide visualization, monitoring, and control of the UAVs 50 acrossa wide geography, e.g., state, region, or national. In FIG. 15 , the GUIprovides a map visualization at the national level, consolidating viewsfrom multiple servers 200. Various circles are illustrated with shading,gradients, etc. to convey information such as congestion in a localregion.

A user can drill-down such as by clicking any of the circles orselecting any geographic region to zoom in. The present disclosurecontemplates zooming between the national level down to local or evenstreet levels to view individual UAVs 50. The key aspect of the GUI isthe information display is catered to the level of UAV 50 traffic. Forexample, at the national level, it is not possible to display every UAV50 since there are orders of magnitude more UAVs 50 than airplanes.Thus, at higher geographic levels, the GUI can provide a heat map or thelike to convey levels of UAV 50 congestion. As the user drills-down tolocal geographies, individual UAVs 50 can be displayed.

Using the GUI, the consolidated servers 200A, and the servers 200,various air traffic control functions can be performed. One aspect isthat control can be high-level (coarse) through individual-level (fine)as well as in-between. That is, control can be at a large geographiclevel (e.g., city or state), at a local level (city or smaller), and atan individual UAV 50 level. The high-level control can be performed viasingle commands through the consolidated server 200A that is propagateddown to the servers 200 and to the UAVs 50. Examples of high-levelcontrol include no-fly zones, congestion control, traffic management,holding patterns, and the like. Examples of individual-level controlinclude flight plan management; separation assurance; real-time control;monitoring of speed, altitude, location, and direction; weather andobstacle reporting; landing services; and the like.

In addition to the communication from the consolidated servers 200A tothe UAVs 50, such as through the servers 200, for air traffic controlfunctions, there can be two-way communication as well. In an embodiment,the UAVs 50 are configured to provide a first set of data to the servers200, such as speed, altitude, location, direction, weather, and obstaclereporting. The servers 200 are configured to provide a second set ofdata to the consolidated servers 200A, such as a summary or digest ofthe first data. This hierarchical data handling enables the consolidatedservers 200A to handle nationwide control of millions of UAVs 50.

For example, when there is a view at the national level, theconsolidated servers 200A can provide summary information for regions,such as illustrated in FIG. 15 . This is based on the second set of datawhich can provide a summary view of the GUI, such as how many UAVs 50are in a region. When there is a drill-down to a local level, theconsolidated servers 200A can obtain more information from the servers,i.e., the first set of data, allowing the consolidated servers 200A toact in a similar manner as the servers 200 for local control.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control and monitor method800. The method 800 includes communicating with a plurality of serverseach configured to communicate with a plurality of UAVs in a geographicor zone coverage (step 802); consolidating data from the plurality ofservers to provide a visualization of a larger geography comprising aplurality of geographic or zone coverages (step 804); providing thevisualization via a Graphical User Interface (GUI) (step 806); andperforming one or more functions via the GUI for air traffic control andmonitoring at any of a high-level and an individual UAV level (step808). The visualization can include a heat map of congestion at thelarger geography and a view of individual UAVs via a drill-down. For theindividual UAV level, the consolidating the data can include obtaining afirst set of data and, for the high-level, the consolidating the datacan include obtaining a second set of data which is a summary or digestof the first set of data. The first set of data can include speed,altitude, location, direction, weather, and obstacle reporting fromindividual UAVs.

For the individual UAV level, the air traffic control and monitoring caninclude any of flight plan management; separation assurance; real-timecontrol; monitoring of speed, altitude, location, and direction; weatherand obstacle reporting; landing services, and wherein, for thehigh-level, the air traffic control and monitoring can include any ofno-fly zones, congestion control, traffic management, and hold patterns.The plurality of UAVs can be configured to constrain flight based oncoverage of a plurality of cell towers, wherein the constrained flightcan include one or more of pre-configuring the plurality of UAVs tooperate only where the coverage exists, monitoring cell signal strengthby the plurality of UAVs and adjusting flight based therein, and acombination thereof. One or more of the plurality of UAVs are configuredfor autonomous operation through the air traffic control. The pluralityof UAVs each can include circuitry adapted to communicate via aplurality of cellular networks to the plurality of servers. Theplurality of cellular networks can include a first wireless network anda second wireless network each provide bi-directional communicationbetween the UAV and the plurality of servers for redundancy with one ofthe first wireless network and the second wireless network operating asprimary and another as a backup.

In another embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) air trafficcontrol and monitoring system includes a network interface and one ormore processors communicatively coupled to one another; and memorystoring instructions that, when executed, cause the one or moreprocessors to: communicate with a plurality of servers each configuredto communicate with a plurality of UAVs in a geographic or zonecoverage; consolidate data from the plurality of servers to provide avisualization of a larger geography comprising a plurality of geographicor zone coverages; provide the visualization via a Graphical UserInterface (GUI); and perform one or more functions via the GUI for airtraffic control and monitoring at any of a high-level and an individualUAV level.

In a further embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumincludes instructions that, when executed, cause one or more processorsto perform steps of: communicating with a plurality of servers eachconfigured to communicate with a plurality of UAVs in a geographic orzone coverage; consolidating data from the plurality of servers toprovide a visualization of a larger geography comprising a plurality ofgeographic or zone coverages; providing the visualization via aGraphical User Interface (GUI); and performing one or more functions viathe GUI for air traffic control and monitoring at any of a high-leveland an individual UAV level.

Obstruction Detection, Identification, and Management Systems andMethods

FIGS. 17 and 18 are block diagrams of the UAV air traffic control system300 describing functionality associated with obstruction detection,identification, and management with FIG. 17 describing data transferfrom the UAVs 50 to the servers 200 and FIG. 18 describing data transferto the UAVs 50 from the servers 200. As described herein, obstructionsinclude, without limitation, other UAVs 50 based on their flight planand objects at or near the ground at a height above ground of severalhundred feet. Again, the UAVs 50 typically fly at low altitudes such as100′-500′ and obstruction management is important based on this lowlevel of flight.

The obstructions can be stored and managed in an obstruction database(DB) 820 communicatively coupled to the servers 200 and part of the UAVair traffic control system 300. Obstructions can be temporary orpermanent and managed accordingly. Thus, the DB 820 can include an entryfor each obstruction with location (e.g., GPS coordinates), size(height), and permanence. Temporary obstructions can be ones that aretransient in nature, such as a scaffold, construction equipment, otherUAVs 50 in flight, etc. Permanent obstructions can be buildings, powerlines, cell towers, geographic (mountains), etc. For the permanence,each entry in the DB 820 can either be marked as permanent or temporarywith a Time to Remove (TTR). The TTR can be how long the entry remainsin the DB 820. The permanence is determined by the servers 200 asdescribed herein.

The obstruction detection, identification, and management are performedin the context of the UAV air traffic control system 300 describedherein with communication between the UAVs 50 and the servers 200 viathe wireless networks 302, 304. FIGS. 17 and 18 illustrate functionalityin the UAV air traffic control system 300 with FIGS. 17 and 18 separateto show different data flow and processing.

In FIG. 17 , the UAVs 50 communicates to the servers 200 through thewireless networks 302, 304. Again, as described herein, the UAVs 50 haveadvanced data capture capabilities, such as video, photos, locationcoordinates, altitude, speed, wind, temperature, etc. Additionally, someUAVs 50 can be equipped with radar to provide radar data surveyingproximate landscape. Collectively, the data capture is performed by datacapture equipment associated with the UAVs 50.

Through the data capture equipment, the UAVs 50 are adapted to detectpotential obstructions and detect operational data (speed, direction,altitude, heading, location, etc.). Based on one or more connections tothe wireless networks 302, 304, the UAVs 50 are adapted to transfer theoperational data to the servers 200. Note, the UAV 50 can be configuredto do some local processing and transmit summaries of the operationaldata to reduce the transmission load on the wireless networks 302, 304.For example, for speed, heading, etc., the UAVs 50 can transmit deltainformation such that the servers 200 can track the flight plan. Note,the transmission of the operational data is performed throughout theflight such that the servers 200 can manage and control the UAVs 50.

For obstructions, the UAVs 50 can capture identification data, photos,video, etc. In an embodiment, the UAVs 50 are provided advancednotification of obstructions (in FIG. 18 ) and capable of local dataprocessing of the identification data to verify the obstructions. If thelocal data processing determines an obstruction is already known, i.e.,provided in a notification from the servers 200, the UAV 50 does notrequire any further processing or data transfer of the identificationdata, i.e., this obstruction is already detected. On the other hand, ifthe UAV 50 detects a potential obstruction, i.e., one that it has notbeen notified of, based on the local data processing, the UAV 50 canperform data transfer of the identification data to the servers 200.

The servers 200 are configured to manage the obstruction DB 820, namelyto update the entries therein. The servers 200 are configured to receiveoperational data from the UAVs 50 under control for management thereof.Specifically, the servers 200 are configured to manage the flight plansof the UAVs 50, and, in particular with respect to obstructions, foradvanced notification of future obstructions in the flight plan.

The servers 200 are configured to receive the detection of potentialobstructions. The UAVs 50 can either simply notify the servers 200 of apotential obstruction as well as provide the identification data for theservers 200 to perform identification and analysis. Upon receipt of anydata from the UAVs 50 related to obstructions (a mere notification,actual photos, etc.), the servers 200 are configured to correlate thisdata with the DB 820. If the data correlates to an entry that exists inthe DB 820, the servers 200 can update the entry if necessary, e.g.,update any information related to the obstruction such as last seendate.

If the servers 200 detect the potential obstruction does not exist inthe DB 820, the servers 200 are configured to add an entry in the DB820, perform identification if possible from the identification data,and potentially instruct a UAV 50 to identify in the future. Forexample, if the servers 200 can identify the potential obstruction fromthe identification data, the servers 200 can create the DB 820 entry andpopulate it with the identified data. The servers 200 can analyze theidentification data, as well as request human review, using patternrecognition to identify what the obstruction is, what itscharacteristics are (height, size, permanency, etc.).

If the servers 200 do not have enough identification data, the servers200 can instruct the identifying UAV 50 or another UAV 50 in proximityin the future to obtain specific identification data for the purposes ofidentification.

In FIG. 18 , the servers 200 continue to manage the DB 820, both forpopulating/managing entries as well as to provide notifications ofobstructions in the flight plans of each of the UAVs 50. Specifically,the servers 200 are configured to keep track of the flight plans of allof the UAVs 50 under its control. As part of this tracking, the servers200 are configured to correlate the operational data to derive theflight plan and to determine any obstructions from the DB 820 in theflight plan. The servers 200 are configured to provide notificationsand/or instructions to the UAVs 50 based on upcoming obstructions.

Additionally, the servers 200 are configured to provide instructions toUAVs 50 to capture identification data for potential obstructions thatare not yet identified. Specifically, the servers 200 can instruct theUAVs 50 on what exact data to obtain, e.g., pictures, video, etc., andfrom what angle, elevation, direction, location, etc. With theidentification data, the servers 200 can perform various processes topattern match the pictures with known objects for identification. Incase an obstruction is not matched, it can be flagged for human review.Also, the human review can be performed based on successful matches tograde the performance and to improve pattern matching techniquesfurther. Identification of the obstruction is important for permanencydeterminations. For example, a new high-rise building is permanent,whereas a construction crane is temporary.

For the TTR, temporary obstructions are automatically removed in the DB820 based on this entry. In an embodiment, the TTR can be a flag with aspecified time. In another embodiment, the TTR can be a flag whichrequires removal if the next UAV 50 passing near the obstruction failsto detect and report it.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart of an obstruction detection and management method900 implemented through the UAV air traffic control system 300 for theUAVs 50. The obstruction detection and management method 900 includesreceiving UAV data from a plurality of UAVs, wherein the UAV datacomprises operational data for the plurality of UAVs and obstructiondata from one or more UAVs (step 902); updating an obstruction databasebased on the obstruction data (step 904); monitoring a flight plan forthe plurality of UAVs based on the operational data (step 906); andtransmitting obstruction instructions to the plurality of UAVs based onanalyzing the obstruction database with their flight plan (step 908).

The obstruction data can include an indication of a potentialobstruction which was not provided to a UAV in the obstructioninstructions. The obstruction data can include a confirmation of anobstruction based on the obstruction instructions, and wherein theupdating can include noting any changes in the obstruction based on theconfirmation. The obstruction instructions can include a request to aUAV to perform data capture of a potential obstruction, wherein theobstruction data can include photos and/or video of the potentialobstruction, and wherein the updating can include identifying thepotential obstruction based on the obstruction data.

The obstruction database can include entries of obstructions with theirheight, size, location, and a permanency flag comprising either atemporary obstruction or a permanent obstruction. The permanency flagcan include a Time To Remove (TTR) for the temporary obstruction whichis a flag with a specified time or a flag which requires removal if thenext UAV passing near the temporary obstruction fails to detect andreport it. The operational data can include a plurality of speed,location, heading, and altitude, and wherein the flight plan isdetermined from the operational data. The plurality of UAVs fly underabout 1000′.

In another embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) air trafficcontrol and monitoring system for obstruction detection and managementincludes a network interface and one or more processors communicativelycoupled to one another; and memory storing instructions that, whenexecuted, cause the one or more processors to receive UAV data from aplurality of UAVs, wherein the UAV data includes operational data forthe plurality of UAVs and obstruction data from one or more UAVs; updatean obstruction database based on the obstruction data; monitor a flightplan for the plurality of UAVs based on the operational data; andtransmit obstruction instructions to the plurality of UAVs based onanalyzing the obstruction database with their flight plan.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that,when executed, cause one or more processors to perform steps of:receiving Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) data from a plurality of UAVs,wherein the UAV data includes operational data for the plurality of UAVsand obstruction data from one or more UAVs; updating an obstructiondatabase based on the obstruction data; monitoring a flight plan for theplurality of UAVs based on the operational data; and transmittingobstruction instructions to the plurality of UAVs based on analyzing theobstruction database with their flight plan.

Managing Detected Static Obstructions

FIG. 20 is a diagram of geographical terrain 1000 with staticobstructions 1002, 1004, 1006. As described herein, static obstructionsare at or near the ground and can be temporary or permanent. Again,since the UAVs 50 fly much lower than conventional aircraft, theseobstructions need to be managed and communicated to the UAVs 50. Adynamic obstruction can include moving objects such as other UAVs 50,vehicles on the ground, etc. Management of dynamic obstructions besidesother UAVs 50 is difficult in the UAV air traffic control system 300 dueto their transient nature. In an embodiment, the UAVs 50 themselves caninclude local techniques to avoid detected dynamic obstructions. The UAVair traffic control system 300 can be used to ensure all controlled UAVs50 know about and avoid other proximate UAVs 50. Static obstructions, onthe other hand, can be efficiently managed and avoided through the UAVair traffic control system 300. The UAV air traffic control system 300can be used to detect the static obstructions through a combination ofcrowd-sourcing data collection by the UAVs 50, use of external databases(mapping programs, satellite imagery, etc.), and the like. The UAV airtraffic control system 300 can also be used to communicate the detectedstatic obstructions to proximate UAVs 50 for avoidance thereof.

Non-limiting examples of static obstructions which are permanent includebuildings, mountains, cell towers, utility lines, bridges, etc.Non-limiting examples of static obstructions which are temporary includetents, parked utility vehicles, etc. From the UAV air traffic controlsystem 300, these temporary and permanent static obstructions can bemanaged the same with the temporary obstructions having a Time To Remove(TTR) parameter which can remove it from the database 820.

The static obstructions can take various forms with different sizes,heights, etc. The static obstruction 1002 is substantially rectangular,e.g., a building or the like. The static obstruction 1004 can besubstantially cylindrical, e.g., a cell tower, pole, or the like. Thestatic obstruction 1006 can be irregularly shaped, e.g., a mountain,building, or the like.

FIG. 21 is a diagram of data structures 1010, 1012 which can be used todefine the exact location of any of the static obstructions 1002, 1004,1006. The UAV air traffic control system 300 can use these datastructures 1010, 1012 to store information in the database 820 regardingthe associated static obstructions 1002, 1004, 1006. In an embodiment,the UAV air traffic control system 300 can use one or both of these datastructures 1010, 1012 to define a location of the static obstructions1002, 1004, 1006. This location can be a no-fly zone, i.e., avoided bythe UAVs 50. The UAV air traffic control system 300 can use the datastructure 1010 for the static obstruction 1002, 1006 and the datastructure 1012 for the static obstruction 1004. In this manner, the UAVs50 can know exactly where the static obstructions 1002, 1004, 1006 arelocated and fly accordingly.

The data structures 1010, 1012 can be managed by the UAV air trafficcontrol system 300 based on data collection by the UAVs 50 and/or othersources. The data structures 1010, 1012 can be stored in the database820 along with the TTR parameter for temporary or permanent.

To populate and manage the data structures 1010, 1012, i.e., toidentify, characterize, and verify, the UAV air traffic control system300 communicates with the UAVs 50 and/or with external sources. For theUAVs 50, the UAVs 50 can be configured to detect the static obstructions1002, 1004, 1006; collect relevant data such as locations, pictures,etc. for populating the data structures 1010, 1012; collect the relevantdata at the direction of the UAV air traffic control system 300; provideverification the static obstructions 1002, 1004, 1006 subsequent to theUAV air traffic control system 300 notifying the UAVs 50 foravoidance/verification; and the like.

In an aspect, the UAVs 50, upon detecting an unidentified staticobstruction 1002, 1004, 1006, the UAVs 50 can collect the relevant dataand forward to the UAV air traffic control system 300. The UAV airtraffic control system 300 can then analyze the relevant data topopulate the data structures 1010, 1012. If additional data is requiredto fully populate the data structures 1010, 1012, the UAV air trafficcontrol system 300 can instruct another UAV 50 at or near the detectedstatic obstruction 1002, 1004, 1006 to collect additional data. Forexample, assume a first UAV 50 detects the static obstruction 1002,1004, 1006 from the east, collects the relevant data, but this is notenough for the UAV air traffic control system 300 to fully populate thedata structures 1010, 1012, the UAV air traffic control system 300 caninstruct a second UAV 50 to approach and collect data from the west.

The UAVs 50 with communication between the UAV air traffic controlsystem 300 can perform real-time detection of the static obstructions1002, 1004, 1006. Additionally, the UAV air traffic control system 300can utilize external sources for offline detection of the staticobstructions 1002, 1004, 1006. For example, the external sources caninclude map data, public record data, satellite imagery, and the like.The UAV air traffic control system 300 can parse and analyze thisexternal data offline to both populate the data structures 1010, 1012 aswell as very the integrity of existing data in the data structures 1010,1012.

Once the data structures 1010, 1012 are populated in the database 820,the UAV air traffic control system 300 can use this data to coordinateflights with the UAVs 50. The UAV air traffic control system 300 canprovide relevant no-fly zone data to UAVs 50 based on their location.The UAV air traffic control system 300 can also manage UAV landing zonesbased on this data, keeping emergency landing zones in differentlocations based on the static obstructions 1002, 1004, 1006; managingrecharging locations in different locations based on the staticobstructions 1002, 1004, 1006; and managing landing locations based onthe static obstructions 1002, 1004, 1006.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of a static obstruction detection and managementmethod 1050 through an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system for UnmannedAerial Vehicles (UAVs). The static obstruction detection and managementmethod 1050 includes receiving UAV data from a plurality of UAVs relatedto static obstructions (step 1052); receiving external data from one ormore external sources related to the static obstructions (step 1054);analyzing the UAV data and the external data to populate and manage anobstruction database of the static obstructions (step 1056); andtransmitting obstruction instructions to the plurality of UAVs based onanalyzing the obstruction database with their flight plan (step 1058).

The obstruction database can include a plurality of data structures,each defining a no-fly zone of location coordinates based on theanalyzing. The data structures define one of a cylinder and a rectanglesized to cover an associated obstruction and with associated locationcoordinates. The data structures each can include a time to removeparameter defining either a temporary or a permanent obstruction. One ofthe UAV data and the external data can be used first to detect anobstruction and enter the obstruction in the obstruction database, andthe other of the UAV data and the external data is used to verify theobstruction in the obstruction database. The static obstructiondetection and management method 1050 can further include transmittinginstructions to one or more UAVs to obtain additional information topopulate and manage the obstruction database. The static obstructiondetection and management method 1050 can further include managing one ormore of emergency landing locations, recharging locations, and landinglocations for the plurality of UAVs based on the obstruction database.The plurality of UAVs fly under about 1000′ and the obstructions arebased thereon.

UAV Configuration

FIG. 23 is a block diagram of functional components implemented inphysical components in the UAV 50 for use with the air traffic controlsystem 300, such as for dynamic and static obstruction detection. Thisembodiment in FIG. 23 can be used with any of the UAV 50 embodimentsdescribed herein. The UAV 50 can include a processing device 1100,flight components 1102, cameras 1104, radar 1106, wireless interfaces1108, a data store/memory 1110, a spectrum analyzer 1120, and a locationdevice 1122. These components can be integrated with, disposed on,associated with the body 82 of the UAV 50. The processing device 1100can be similar to the mobile device 100 or the processor 102. Generally,the processing device 1100 can be configured to control operations ofthe flight components 1102, the cameras 1104, the radar 1106, thewireless interfaces 1108, and the data store/memory 1110.

The flight components 1102 can include the rotors 80 and the like.Generally, the flight components 1102 are configured to control theflight, i.e., speed, direction, altitude, heading, etc., of the UAV 50responsive to control by the processing device 1100.

The cameras 1104 can be disposed on or about the body 82. The UAV 50 caninclude one or more cameras 1104, for example, facing differentdirections as well as supporting pan, tilt, zoom, etc. Generally, thecameras 1104 are configured to obtain images and video, including highdefinition. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 includes at least two cameras1104 such as a front-facing and a rear-facing camera. The cameras 1104are configured to provide the images or video to the processing device1100 and/or the data store/memory 1110. The front-facing camera can beconfigured to detect obstructions in front of the UAV 50 as it flies andthe rear-facing camera can be configured to obtain additional images forfurther characterization of the detected obstructions.

The radar 1106 can be configured to detect objects around the UAV 50 inaddition to the cameras 1104, using standard radar techniques. Thewireless interfaces 1108 can be similar to the wireless interfaces 106with similar functionality. The data store/memory 1110 can be similar tothe data store 108 and the memory 110. The wireless interfaces 1108 canbe used to communicate with the air traffic control system 300 over oneor more wireless networks as described herein.

Collectively, the components in the UAV 50 are configured to fly the UAV50, and concurrent detect and identify obstructions during the flight.In an embodiment, the radar 1106 can detect an obstruction through theprocessing device 1100, the processing device 1100 can cause the cameras1104 to obtain images or video, the processing device 1100 can causeadjustments to the flight plan accordingly, and the processing device1100 can identify aspects of the obstruction from the images or video.In another embodiment, the camera 1104 can detect the obstruction, theprocessing device 1100 can cause adjustments to the flight planaccordingly, and the processing device 1100 can identify aspects of theobstruction from the images or video. In a further embodiment, thefront-facing camera or the radar 1106 can detect the obstruction, theprocessing device 1100 can cause the rear-facing and/or the front-facingcamera to obtain images or video, the processing device 1100 can causeadjustments to the flight plan accordingly, and the processing device1100 can identify aspects of the obstruction from the images or video.

In all the embodiments, the wireless interfaces 1108 can be used tocommunicate information about the detected obstruction to the airtraffic control system 300. This information can be based on the localprocessing by the processing device 1100, and the information caninclude, without limitation, size, location, shape, type, images,movement characteristics, etc.

For dynamic obstructions, the UAV 50 can determine movementcharacteristics such as from multiple images or video. The movementcharacteristics can include speed, direction, altitude, etc. and can bederived from analyzing the images of video over time. Based on thesecharacteristics, the UAV 50 can locally determine how to avoid thedetected dynamic obstructions.

Additionally, the air traffic control system 300 can keep track of allof the UAVs 50 under its control or management. Moving UAVs 50 are oneexample of dynamic obstructions. The air traffic control system 300 cannotify the UAVs 50 of other UAVs 50 and the UAVs 50 can also communicatethe detection of the UAVs 50 as well as other dynamic and staticobstructions to the air traffic control system 300.

The spectrum analyzer 1120 is configured to measure wirelessperformance. The spectrum analyzer 1120 can be incorporated in the UAV50, attached thereto, etc. The spectrum analyzer 1120 is communicativelycoupled to the processing device 1100 and the location device 1122. Thelocation device 1122 can be a Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) deviceor the like. Specifically, the location device 1122 is configured todetermine a precise location of the UAV 50. The spectrum analyzer 1120can be configured to detect signal bandwidth, frequency, and RadioFrequency (RF) strength. These can collectively be referred to asmeasurements, and they can be correlated to the location taken from thelocation device 1122.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart of a UAV method 1200 for obstruction detection.The UAV includes flight components attached or disposed to a base; oneor more cameras; radar; one or more wireless interfaces; and aprocessing device communicatively coupled to the flight components, theone or more cameras, the radar, and the wireless interfaces. The UAVmethod 1200 includes monitoring proximate airspace with one or more ofone or more cameras and radar (step 1202); detecting an obstructionbased on the monitoring (step 1204); identifying characteristics of theobstruction (step 1206); altering a flight plan, through the flightcomponents, if required based on the characteristics (step 1208); andcommunicating the obstruction to an air traffic control system via oneor more wireless interfaces (step 1210).

The detecting can be via the radar and the method 1200 can furtherinclude causing the one or more cameras to obtain images or video of thedetected obstruction at a location based on the radar; and analyzing theimages or video to identify the characteristics. The detecting can bevia the one or more cameras, and the method 1200 can further includeanalyzing images or video from the one or more cameras to identify thecharacteristics. The one or more cameras can include a front-facingcamera and a rear-facing camera and the method 1200 can further includecausing one or more of the front-facing camera and the rear-facingcamera to obtain additional images or video; and analyzing the images orvideo to identify the characteristics. The obstructions can includedynamic obstructions, and the characteristics comprise size, shape,speed, direction, altitude, and heading. The characteristics can bedetermined based on analyzing multiple images or video over time. TheUAV method 1200 can further include receiving notifications from the airtraffic control system related to previously detected obstructions; andupdating the air traffic control system based on the detection of thepreviously detected obstructions. The characteristics are for anobstruction database maintained by the air traffic control system.

Waypoint Directory

In an embodiment, the UAV air traffic control system 300 uses aplurality of waypoints to manage air traffic in a geographic region.Again, waypoints are sets of coordinates that identify a point inphysical space. The waypoints can include longitude and latitude as wellas an altitude. For example, the waypoints can be defined over somearea, for example, a square, rectangle, hexagon, or some other geometricshape, covering some amount of area. It is not practical to define awaypoint as a physical point as this would lead to an infinite number ofwaypoints for management by the UAV air traffic control system 300.Instead, the waypoints can cover a set area, such as every foot tohundred feet or some other distance. In an embodiment, the waypoints canbe set between 1′ to 50′ in dense urban regions, between 1′ to 100′ inmetropolitan or suburban regions, and between 1′ to 1000′ in ruralregions. Setting such sized waypoints provides a manageable approach inthe UAV air traffic control system 300 and for communication over thewireless networks with the UAVs 50. The waypoints can also include analtitude. However, since UAV 50 flight is generally constrained toseveral hundred feet, the waypoints can either altitude or segment thealtitude in a similar manner as the area. For example, the altitude canbe separated in 100′ increments, etc. Accordingly, the defined waypointscan blanket an entire geographic region for management by the UAV airtraffic control system 300.

The waypoints can be detected by the UAVs 50 using locationidentification components such as GPS. A typical GPS receiver can locatea waypoint with an accuracy of three meters or better when used withland-based assisting technologies such as the Wide Area AugmentationSystem (WAAS). Waypoints are managed by the UAV air traffic controlsystem 300 and communicated to the UAVs 50, and used for a variety ofpurposes described herein. In an embodiment, the waypoints can be usedto define a flight path for the UAVs 50 by defining a start and endwaypoint as well as defining a plurality of intermediate waypoints.

The waypoints for a given geographic region (e.g., a city, region,state, etc.) can be managed in a waypoint directory which is stored andmanaged in the DB 820. The DB 820 can include the waypoint directory andactively manage a status of each waypoint. For example, the status canbe either obstructed, clear, or unknown. With these classifications, theUAV air traffic control system 300 can actively manage UAV 50 flightpaths. The UAVs 50 can also check and continually update the DB 820through communication with the UAV air traffic control system 300. Theuse of the waypoints provides an efficient mechanism to define flightpaths.

Use of Waypoints

The UAV air traffic control system 300 and the UAVs 50 can use thewaypoints for various purposes including i) flight path definition, ii)start and end point definition, iii) tracking of UAVs 50 in flight, iv)measuring the reliability and accuracy of information from particularUAVs 50, v) visualizations of UAV 50 flight, and the like. For flightpath definition, the waypoints can be a collection of points defininghow a particular UAV 50 should fly. In an embodiment, the flight pathcan be defined with waypoints across the entire flight path. In anotherembodiment, the flight path can be defined by various marker waypointsallowing the particular UAV 50 the opportunity to determine flight pathsbetween the marker waypoints locally. In a further embodiment, theflight path is defined solely by the start and end waypoints, and theUAV 50 locally determines the flight path based thereon.

In these embodiments, the intermediate waypoints are still monitored andused to manage the UAV 50 in flight. In an embodiment, the UAV 50 canprovide updates to the UAV air traffic control system 300 based onobstruction detection as described herein. These updates can be used toupdate the status of the waypoint directory in the DB 820. The UAV airtraffic control system 300 can use the waypoints as a mechanism to trackthe UAVs 50. This can include waypoint rules such as no UAV 50 can be ina certain proximity to another UAV 50 based on the waypoints, speed, anddirection. This can include proactive notifications based on the currentwaypoint, speed, and direction, and the like.

In an embodiment, the waypoints can be used for measuring thereliability and accuracy of information from particular UAVs 50. Again,the waypoints provide a mechanism to define the geography. The UAV airtraffic control system 300 is configured to receive updates from UAVs 50about the waypoints. The UAV air traffic control system 300 candetermine the reliability and accuracy of the updates based oncrowd-sourcing the updates. Specifically, the UAV air traffic controlsystem 300 can receive an update which either confirms the currentstatus or changes the current status. For example, assume a waypoint iscurrently clear, and an update is provided which says the waypoint isclear, then this UAV 50 providing the update is likely accurate.Conversely, assume a waypoint is currently clear, and an update isprovided which says the waypoint is now obstructed, but a short timelater, another update from another UAV 50 says the waypoint is clear,this may reflect inaccurate information. Based on comparisons betweenUAVs 50 and their associated waypoint updates, scoring can occur for theUAVs 50 to determine reliability and accuracy. This is useful for theUAV air traffic control system 300 to implement status updatechanges—preference may be given to UAVs 50 with higher scoring.

The waypoints can also be used for visualization in the UAV air trafficcontrol system 300. Specifically, waypoints on mapping programs providea convenient mechanism to show location, start and end points, etc. Thewaypoints can be used to provide operators and pilots visual informationrelated to one or more UAVs 50.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart of a waypoint management method 1250 for an AirTraffic Control (ATC) system for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). Thewaypoint management method 1250 includes communicating with a pluralityof UAVs via one or more wireless networks comprising at least onecellular network (step 1252); receiving updates related to anobstruction status of each of a plurality of waypoints from theplurality of UAVs, wherein the plurality of waypoints are defined over ageographic region under control of the ATC system (step 1254); andmanaging flight paths, landing, and take-off of the plurality of UAVs inthe geographic region based on the obstruction status of each of theplurality of waypoints (step 1256). The plurality of waypoints eachincludes a latitude and longitude coordinate defining a point aboutwhich an area is defined for covering a portion of the geographicregion. A size of the area can be based on whether the area covers anurban region, a suburban region, and a rural region in the geographicarea, wherein the size is smaller for the urban region than for thesuburban region and the rural region, and wherein the size is smallerfor the suburban region than for the rural region. Each of the pluralityof waypoints can include an altitude range set based on flight altitudesof the plurality of UAVs.

The ATC system can include an obstruction database comprising a datastructure for each of the plurality of waypoints defining a uniqueidentifier of a location and the obstruction status, and wherein theobstruction status comprises one of clear, obstructed, and unknown. Thewaypoint management method 1250 can further include updating theobstruction status for each of the plurality of waypoints in theobstruction database based on the received updates (step 1258). Thewaypoint management method 1250 can further include defining the flightpaths based on specifying two or more waypoints of the plurality ofwaypoints. A flight path can be defined by one of specifying a startwaypoint and an end waypoint and allowing a UAV to determine a paththerebetween locally; and specifying a start waypoint and an endwaypoint and a plurality of intermediate waypoints between the startwaypoint and the end waypoint. The waypoint management method 1250 canfurther include scoring each UAV's updates for the plurality ofwaypoints to determine the reliability and accuracy of the updates.

In another embodiment, an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system for UnmannedAerial Vehicles (UAVs) using waypoint management includes a networkinterface and one or more processors communicatively coupled to oneanother, wherein the network interface is communicatively coupled to aplurality of UAVs via one or more wireless networks; and memory storinginstructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors tocommunicate with a plurality of UAVs via one or more wireless networkscomprising at least one cellular network; receive updates related to anobstruction status of each of a plurality of waypoints from theplurality of UAVs, wherein the plurality of waypoints are defined over ageographic region under control of the ATC system; and manage flightpaths, landing, and take-off of the plurality of UAVs in the geographicregion based on the obstruction status of each of the plurality ofwaypoints.

In a further embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumcomprising instructions that, when executed, cause one or moreprocessors to perform steps of communicating with a plurality of UAVsvia one or more wireless networks comprising at least one cellularnetwork; receiving updates related to an obstruction status of each of aplurality of waypoints from the plurality of UAVs, wherein the pluralityof waypoints are defined over a geographic region under control of theATC system; and managing flight paths, landing, and take-off of theplurality of UAVs in the geographic region based on the obstructionstatus of each of the plurality of waypoints.

Network Switchover and Emergency Instructions

FIG. 26 is a flowchart of a UAV network switchover and emergencyprocedure method 1600. The method 1600 can be implemented by the UAV 50in conjunction with the ATC system 300 and the wireless networks 302,304. The method 1600 includes communicating to an Air Traffic Control(ATC) system via a primary wireless network (step 1602); receiving andstoring emergency instructions from the ATC system (step 1604);detecting communication disruption on the primary wireless network tothe ATC system (step 1606); responsive to the detecting, switching to abackup wireless network to reestablish communication to the ATC system(step 1608); and, responsive to failing to reestablish communication tothe ATC system via the backup wireless network, implementing theemergency instructions (step 1610).

Thus, the method 1600 enables the UAV 50 to maintain connectivity to theATC system 300 during an outage, catastrophe, etc. The ATC system 300 isconfigured to provide the emergency instructions from the ATC system 300for use in case of a network disturbance or outage. The UAV 50 isconfigured to store the emergency instructions. The emergencyinstructions can include an altitude to maintain and a flight plan tomaintain until communication is reestablished, nearby landing zones toproceed to, continuing to a destination as planned, immediate landing atone of a plurality of designated locations, flying lane information,hover in place, hover in place for a certain amount of time to regaincommunication, hover in place until a battery level is reached and thenland or proceed to another location, and the like. Of note, the ATCsystem 300 can periodically update the emergency instructions. Further,the ATC system 300 can provide multiple different emergency instructionsfor a local decision by the UAV 50. The objective of the method 1600 isto ensure the UAV 50 operates with communication to the ATC system 300and in the absence of communication to implement the emergencyinstructions.

The method 1600 can further include, during the emergency instructions,reestablishing communication to the ATC system via one of the primarywireless network and the backup wireless network; and receivinginstructions from the ATC system. The primary wireless network caninclude a first wireless provider network, and the backup wirelessnetwork can include a second wireless provider network. The firstwireless provider network and the second wireless provider network caninclude a cellular network, such as LTE. The UAV 50 can include awireless interface configured to communicate to each of the firstwireless provider network and the second wireless provider network. Thecommunicating to the ATC system can include providing flight informationto the ATC system, and receiving instructions and updates from the ATCsystem for real-time control. The flight information can include weatherand obstacle reporting, speed, altitude, location, and direction, andthe instructions and updates can relate to separation assurance, trafficmanagement, landing, and flight plan.

In another embodiment, the UAV 50 is configured for network switchoverto communicate with an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. The UAV 50includes one or more rotors disposed to a body and configured forflight; wireless interfaces including hardware and antennas adapted tocommunicate with a primary wireless network and a backup wirelessnetwork of a plurality of wireless networks; a processor coupled to thewireless interfaces and the one or more rotors; and memory storinginstructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: communicate toATC system via the primary wireless network; receive and store emergencyinstructions from the ATC system; detect communication disruption on theprimary wireless network to the ATC system; responsive to detection ofthe communication disruption, switch to the backup wireless network toreestablish communication to the ATC system; and, responsive to failureto reestablish communication to the ATC system via the backup wirelessnetwork, implement the emergency instructions.

Elevator or Tube Lift

FIGS. 27-30 are diagrams of a lift tube 1700 for drone takeoff. FIG. 27is a diagram of the lift tube 1700 and a staging location 1702 and FIG.28 is a diagram of the lift tube 1700 in a location 1704 such as afactory, warehouse, distribution center, etc. FIG. 29 is a diagram of apneumatic lift tube 1700A, and FIG. 30 is a diagram of an elevator lifttube 1700B. The present disclosure includes systems for the lift tube1700 and methods for the use of the lift tube 1700 in conjunction withthe UAV air traffic control system 300.

The lift tube 1700 is utilized for the UAVs 50 to take off from withinthe location 1704. Specifically, the lift tube 1700 is located in thelocation 1704, such as a factory, warehouse, distribution center, etc.,such that the UAVs 50 can be launched from a floor or interior point inthe location 1704. The lift tube 1700 provides an efficient flow and useof the UAV 50 in existing facilities, i.e., incorporating UAV 50 takeofffrom within the facility as opposed to adding extra steps or moving theUAVs 50 outside or up to a roof. That is, the UAVs 50 can be loaded withproducts or delivery items and then take off via the lift tube 1700 toan elevated position or rooftop without an individual carrying the UAVto the roof or outside.

The lift tube 1700 is a physical conduit or the like which extends froma lower portion of the location 1704 to outside the location 1704, suchas on the roof. For example, the lift tube 1700 can be cylindrical orsquare and extend in a vertical direction. The size of the lift tube1700 is such that it supports the UAV 50 in an upward direction alongwith any cargo carried by the UAV 50. Of note, the lift tube 1700 couldsupport multiple UAVs 50 simultaneously at different elevations.

In an embodiment, the lift tube 1700 can be the pneumatic lift tube1700A which includes compressed air 1720 to cause the UAVs 50 to moveupwards from ingress of the pneumatic lift tube 1700A to an egressoutside. For example, the UAVs 50 can be loaded in a closed cylinderwhich is moved in the pneumatic lift tube 1700A. Alternatively, the UAVs50 can fly themselves in the pneumatic lift tube 1700A with thecompressed air 1720 providing assistance.

In another embodiment, the lift tube 1700 can be the elevator lift tube1700B which includes an elevator including a lift 1730 and multiplesupports 1732. Each UAV 50 can be placed on one of the supports 1732,and the lift 1730 can move to raise the support 1732.

In operation, the staging location 1702 can be a conveyor belt or thelike. For example, personnel can place the UAVs 50 and associated cargoon the staging location 1702, similar to an aircraft in line for taxi atthe runway. The staging location 1702 can provide the UAVs 50 to thelift tube 1700 for launch thereof. Again, the lift tube 1700 can be thepneumatic lift tube 1700A, the elevator lift tube 1700B, or the likethat raises the UAVs 50 that have been loaded with products or deliveryitems. This essentially creates a launching pad from an elevatedposition or rooftop without forcing employees to have to go onto theroof.

Further, the operation of the lift tube 1700 can be controlled by theUAV air traffic control system 300 which in addition to performing thevarious functions described herein can further include logisticsmanagement to coordinate the UAVs 50 in the location 1704.

In an embodiment, a method of using a lift tube with an Unmanned AerialVehicle (UAV) air traffic control system includes staging one or moreUAVs and associated cargo for takeoff; moving the staged one or moreUAVs to a lift tube; and controlling the lift tube by the UAV airtraffic control system to provide the one or more UAVs for takeoff,wherein the lift tube is a vertical structure disposed in a facility toraise the one or more UAVs from an interior position in the facility fortakeoff outside of the facility. The lift tube can include an elevatorlift tube with a lift and a plurality of supports disposed thereto, eachof the supports comprising a vertical structure supporting a UAV withassociated cargo, and the lift is configured to raise the plurality ofsupports along the elevator lift tube. The lift tube can include apneumatic lift tube with compressed air therein causing a vacuumextending upwards in the vertical structure for lifting the one or moreUAVs. The facility can include one of a factory, a warehouse, and adistribution center. The UAV air traffic control system 300 can beconfigured to provide logistics management to coordinate the staging,the moving, and the takeoff of the one or more UAVs via the controlledlift tube. The lift tube 1700 can be communicative coupled to acontroller which has a wireless network connection to the UAV airtraffic control system 300 for control thereof.

In another embodiment, a lift tube system controlled in part by anUnmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) air traffic control system includes astaging location for one or more UAVs and associated cargo for takeoff;a lift tube comprising a vertical structure disposed in a facility toraise the one or more UAVs from an interior position in the facility fortakeoff outside of the facility; and a controller configured to causemovement of the staged one or more UAVs to the lift tube; and controlthe lift tube with the UAV air traffic control system to provide the oneor more UAVs for takeoff. The lift tube can include an elevator lifttube with a lift and a plurality of supports disposed thereto, each ofthe supports comprising a vertical structure supporting a UAV withassociated cargo, and the lift is configured to raise the plurality ofsupports along the elevator lift tube. The lift tube can include apneumatic lift tube with compressed air therein causing a vacuumextending upwards in the vertical structure for lifting the one or moreUAVs. The facility can include one of a factory, a warehouse, and adistribution center. The UAV air traffic control system can beconfigured to provide logistics management to coordinate the staging,the moving, and the takeoff of the one or more UAVs via the controlledlift tube. The lift tube can be communicatively coupled to a controllerwhich has a wireless network connection to the UAV air traffic controlsystem for control thereof.

In a further embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) air trafficcontrol system configured to control a lift tube system includes anetwork interface communicatively coupled to the lift tube system; aprocessor communicatively coupled to the network interface; and memorystoring instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to,responsive to staging one or more UAVs and associated cargo for takeoff,cause movement of the staged one or more UAVs to a lift tube; andcontrol the lift tube by the UAV air traffic control system to providethe one or more UAVs for takeoff, wherein the lift tube is a verticalstructure disposed in a facility to raise the one or more UAVs from aninterior position in the facility for takeoff outside of the facility.The lift tube can include an elevator lift tube with a lift and aplurality of supports disposed thereto, each of the supports comprisinga vertical structure supporting a UAV with associated cargo, and thelift is configured to raise the plurality of supports along the elevatorlift tube. The lift tube can include a pneumatic lift tube withcompressed air therein causing a vacuum extending upwards in thevertical structure for lifting the one or more UAVs. The facility caninclude one of a factory, a warehouse, and a distribution center. TheUAV air traffic control system can be configured to provide logisticsmanagement to coordinate the staging, the moving, and the takeoff of theone or more UAVs via the controlled lift tube. The lift tube can becommunicatively coupled to a controller which has a wireless networkconnection to the UAV air traffic control system for control thereof.

There can be one or more lift tubes 1700 in the location 1704. In anembodiment, the lift tube 1700 can be used solely for cargo, i.e., tolift the cargo up to a roof and then the cargo is attached to the UAV50. Here, the cargo can be connected to the UAV 50 on the roof, and theUAV 50 can then take off. Here, there can be a takeoff point 1750 whereUAVs 50 are staged, and the cargo is added from the lift tube 1700. Thelift tube 1700 can be either the pneumatic lift tube 1700A, the elevatorlift tube 1700B, or the like, and the cargo can be lifted on thesupports 1732 or in a capsule which slides in the pneumatic lift tube1700A. The air traffic control system 300 can control the takeoff of thevarious UAVs 50 at the takeoff point 1750.

Modified Inevitable Collision State (ICS)

FIG. 31 is a flowchart of a modified inevitable collision state method1800 for collision avoidance of drones. The method 1800 is implementedthrough the UAV air traffic control system 300 described herein. Themethod 1800 can be performed in one or more servers each including anetwork interface, a processor, and memory; and a databasecommunicatively coupled to the one or more servers, wherein the networkinterface in each of the one or more servers is communicatively coupledto one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) via a plurality ofwireless networks at least one of which includes a cellular network.

The method 1800 includes obtaining operational data from a UAV (step1802), obtaining conditions from one or more of the operational data andthe database (step 1804), determining a future flight plan based on theoperational data and a flying lane assignment for the UAV (step 1806),determining potential collisions in the future flight plan based onstatic obstructions and dynamic obstructions, obtained from the databasebased on the future flight plan (step 1808), and providing evasivemaneuver instructions to the UAV based on the determined potentialcollisions (step 1810).

The objective of the method 1800 is up to 100% collision avoidance bymodeling potential collisions based on algorithms taking into accountdrone size; drone speed, direction, and wind load; and wind speed anddirection. The operational data can include speed, direction, altitude,heading, and location of the UAV, and wherein the future flight plan canbe determined based on a size of the UAV and the UAV speed, direction,and wind load.

The method 1800 can further include providing the flying lane assignmentto the UAV, wherein the flying lane assignment is selected from aplurality of flying lane assignments to maximize collision-freetrajectories based on the static obstructions. The method 1800 canfurther include managing ground hold time for a plurality of UAVs tomanage airspace, i.e., minimize ground hold time for drones, safelymaximize drone flight time for all airspace users. The evasive maneuverinstructions utilize six degrees of freedom in movement of the UAV. Themethod 1800 can further include storing the future flight plan in thedatabase along with future flight plans for a plurality of UAVs, for adetermination of the dynamic obstructions.

The method 1800 can include algorithms to predict finally restinglocations for falling drones from various altitudes and under a varietyof conditions (velocity, wind speed, drone size/wind load, etc.).Advantageously, the method 1800 can move all drone traffic safelythrough U.S. airspace—recognizing it is a dynamic environment. This mayencourage the use of flying lanes that are located away from or abovepotential consumer drone traffic. The method 1800 can also minimize andattempt to eliminate all unauthorized drone flights.

In another embodiment, an ATC system 300 includes one or more serverseach including a network interface, a processor, and memory; and adatabase communicatively coupled to the one or more servers, wherein thenetwork interface in each of the one or more servers is communicativelycoupled to one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) via a pluralityof wireless networks at least one of which includes a cellular network;wherein the one or more servers are configured to obtain operationaldata from a UAV, obtain conditions from one or more of the operationaldata and the database, determine a future flight plan based on theoperational data and a flying lane assignment for the UAV, determinepotential collisions in the future flight plan based on staticobstructions and dynamic obstructions, obtained from the database basedon the future flight plan, and provide evasive maneuver instructions tothe UAV based on the determined potential collisions.

In a further embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) includes oneor more rotors disposed to a body and configured for flight; wirelessinterfaces including hardware and antennas adapted to communicate with aplurality of wireless networks at least one of which includes a cellularnetwork; a processor coupled to the wireless interfaces and the one ormore rotors; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, causethe processor to monitor operational data during the flight, provide theoperational data to an air traffic control system via the wirelessnetworks, wherein the air traffic control system obtains conditions fromone or more of the operational data and a database, determines a futureflight plan based on the operational data and a flying lane assignmentfor the UAV, and determines potential collisions in the future flightplan based on static obstructions and dynamic obstructions, obtainedfrom the database based on the future flight plan, and receive evasivemaneuver instructions from the air traffic control system based on thedetermined potential collisions.

Flying Lane Management with Lateral Separation

FIG. 32 is a flowchart of a flying lane management method 1850. Again,the flying lane management method 1850 relates to lateral separationsbetween drones (UAV's) operating in the same flying lane or at the samealtitude and in the same proximity or geography. The distance betweenUAVs 50 is standardized and set based on the purpose of the particularflying lane 700 by the ATC system 300. For example, the flying lane 700is an entry and exit lane allowing for UAVs 50 taking off to enter theATC system 300, an intermediate flying lane that allows for some speedbut also puts UAVs 50 in a position to move into an entry/exit lane, ahigh-speed lane (express) at a higher altitude allowing for UAVs 50 toquickly reach their destination, and the like.

In an embodiment, standard distances between UAVs 50 may be closer inlower altitude/entry and exit lanes where UAV 50 speeds may be lowerthan higher altitude lanes. Standard distances between UAVs 50 may befurther in high altitude lanes due to the increased speed of the UAVs 50and allow for more time for speed and course corrections and to avoidcollisions.

The distance between UAVs 50 can be changed at any time and newinstructions sent to UAVs 50, from the ATC system 300 via the wirelessnetworks 302, 304, to require speed changes or to hold the position. Thenew instructions can be based on changes in weather and morespecifically storms and rain, changes in wind speed and dealing withimprecise wind speed forecasts that impact drone speed and fuel usage(battery, gas), obstructions entering or expected to enter the flyinglane(s) 700, a UAV 50 experiencing a problem such as limited batterypower or fuel left, temporary flight restrictions that may includerestricted airspace, and the like.

The lateral separation accounts for UAVs 50 entering and leaving flyinglanes 700 to account for the required takeoff, landing, and possiblehovering or delivery of products by UAVs 50 that must exit flying lanesto achieve their objectives. All communications to and from UAVs 50occur over the wireless networks 302, 304 to and from the ATC system 300and/or backup Air Traffic Control centers. The airspeed for UAVs 50 canbe measured and/or authorized in knots and/or miles per hour (mph)within and outside of the flying lanes 700 to achieve appropriatelateral separations within the flying lanes. The objective of theseprocedures is to ensure safe and efficient drone flights in the UnitedStates airspace.

The flying lane management method 1850 includes, in an air trafficcontrol system configured to manage UAV flight in a geographic region,communicating to one or more UAVs over one or more wireless networks,wherein a plurality of flying lanes are defined and standardized in thegeographic region each based on a specific purpose (step 1852);determining an associated flying lane of the plurality of flying lanesfor each of the one or more UAVs (step 1854); communicating theassociated flying lane to the one or more UAVs over the one or morewireless networks (step 1856); receiving feedback from the one or moreUAVs via the one or more wireless networks during flight in theassociated flying lane (step 1858); and providing a new instruction tothe one or more UAVs based on the feedback (step 1860).

The plurality of flying lanes can include lanes for entry and exitallowing the one or more UAVs to take off or land, lanes for theintermediate flight which are positioned adjacent to the lanes for entryand exit, and lanes for high speed at a higher altitude than the lanesfor intermediate flight. Distances between UAVs can be set closer in thelanes for entry and exit than in the lanes for intermediate flight thanin the lanes for high speed. The new instruction can be based on achange in weather comprising storms or rain. The new instruction can bebased on a change in wind speed and based on wind speed forecasts andassociated impact on the one or more UAVs and their fuel usage. The newinstruction can be based on obstructions entering or expected to enterthe flying lane.

In another embodiment, an air traffic control system includes one ormore servers each comprising a network interface, a processor, andmemory; and a database communicatively coupled to the one or moreservers, wherein the network interface in each of the one or moreservers is communicatively coupled to one or more Unmanned AerialVehicles (UAVs) via a plurality of wireless networks at least one ofwhich comprises a cellular network, wherein a plurality of flying lanesare defined and standardized in the geographic region each based on aspecific purpose, and wherein the one or more servers are configured tocommunicate to the one or more UAVs over the one or more wirelessnetworks; determine an associated flying lane of the plurality of flyinglanes for each of the one or more UAVs; communicate the associatedflying lane to the one or more UAVs over the one or more wirelessnetworks; receive feedback from the one or more UAVs via the one or morewireless networks during flight in the associated flying lane; andprovide a new instruction to the one or more UAVs based on the feedback.

In a further embodiment, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) includes oneor more rotors disposed to a body and configured for flight; wirelessinterfaces including hardware and antennas adapted to communicate withone or more wireless networks at least one of which includes a cellularnetwork; a processor coupled to the wireless interfaces and the one ormore rotors; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, causethe processor to communicate over the one or more wireless networks withan air traffic control system configured to manage UAV flight in ageographic region, wherein a plurality of flying lanes are defined andstandardized in the geographic region each based on a specific purpose;receive an associated flying lane of the plurality of flying lanes fromthe air traffic control system over the one or more wireless networks;provide feedback to the air traffic control system via the one or morewireless networks during flight in the associated flying lane; receive anew instruction from the air traffic control system based on thefeedback; and implement the new instruction.

Drone Service for Package Pickup and Delivery

FIG. 33 is a diagram of a drone delivery system 2000 using the ATCsystem 300. Again, the UAVs 50 can be used to pick up and deliver goodssuch as, for example, groceries, packages, mail, takeout, etc. The dronedelivery system 2000 contemplates the operation of a service where theoperator utilizes the UAVs 50 and communication thereto via the wirelessnetworks 302, 304. For example, a UAV 50 from the delivery operator canfly to various distribution/pickup locations 2002 systems and methodsfor Drone Air Traffic Control (ATC) over wireless networks for packagepickup and delivery to various delivery locations 2004, e.g., homes,offices, etc.

The delivery operator can provide a delivery service which supportsmultiple different distribution/pickup locations 2002, such as fordifferent companies. That is, the delivery service can support variouscompanies in a geographic region, supported by the ATC system 300. Thedelivery service can be for smaller companies who cannot build their owndrone fleet. For example, the delivery service can be similar to parceldelivery services, albeit via the UAVs 50. Of course, other embodimentsare contemplated. Also, it is contemplated that the UAV 50 can handlemultiple packages at the same time, including from differentdistribution/pickup locations 2002 and with different delivery locations2004. The ATC system 300 can perform the various functions describedherein. Further, the UAVs 50 for the drone delivery system 2000 can alsobe configured as described herein, such as to constrain flight to wherethere is coverage in the wireless networks 302, 304.

FIG. 34 is a flowchart of Drone Air Traffic Control (ATC) method 2010over wireless networks for package pickup and delivery. The method 2100includes, in an air traffic control system configured to manage UnmannedAerial Vehicle (UAV) flight in a geographic region, communicating to oneor more UAVs over one or more wireless networks, wherein the one or moreUAVs are configured to constrain flight based on coverage of the one ormore wireless networks (step 2012); receiving a delivery request from acompany specifying a pickup location, a package, and a delivery location(step 2014); selecting a UAV of the one or more UAVs for the deliveryrequests (step 2016); and directing the UAV to pick up the package atthe pickup location and to deliver the package to the delivery location,wherein the air traffic control system provides a flight plan to the UAVbased on the delivery request (step 2018).

The drone method 2010 can further include receiving a second deliveryrequest from a second company specifying a second pickup location, asecond package, and a second delivery location; selecting a second UAVof the one or more UAVs for the delivery requests; and directing thesecond UAV to pick up the second package at the second pickup locationand to deliver the second package to the second delivery location,wherein the air traffic control system provides a second flight plan tothe second UAV based on the second delivery request

The UAV 50 can include an antenna communicatively coupled to the one ormore wireless networks, and wherein the flight is constrained based onthe antenna monitoring cell signal strength during the flight andadjusting the flight based therein whenever the cell signal strength islost or degraded. The drone method 2010 can further include receivingflight information from the UAV during the flight; and providing updatesto the flight plan based on the flight information. The air trafficcontrol system can maintain location information for the UAV based onthe communicating. The location information can be determined based on acombination of triangulation by the plurality of cell towers and adetermination by the UAV based on a location identification network.

The drone method 2010 can further include assigning the UAV a specifiedflying lane and ensuring the UAV is within the specified flying lanebased on the communicating. The drone method 2010 can further includereceiving photographs and/or video of the delivery location subsequentto the delivery of the package; and providing the photographs and/orvideo as a response to the delivery request. The directing can includeproviding a delivery technique comprising one of landing, dropping via atether, dropping to a doorstep, dropping to a mailbox, dropping to aporch, and dropping to a garage.

In another embodiment, a drone air traffic control system includes aprocessor and a network interface communicatively coupled to oneanother; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: communicate to one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)over one or more wireless networks, wherein the one or more UAVs areconfigured to constrain flight based on coverage of the one or morewireless networks; receive a delivery request from a company specifyinga pickup location, a package, and a delivery location; select a UAV ofthe one or more UAVs for the delivery requests; and direct the UAV topick up the package at the pickup location and to deliver the package tothe delivery location, wherein the air traffic control system provides aflight plan to the UAV based on the delivery request.

Weather Information Based Flight Updates

Again, flying lanes can be used by the ATC system 300 to manage flightof various UAVs 50 in a geographic region. Additionally, a highpercentage of problems in flight are caused by weather-relatedincidents, e.g., wind shear, crosswinds, fuel mismanagement caused byunexpected or unplanned winds, ice, freezing rain, icing, thunderstorms,etc. Accordingly, in an embodiment, the ATC system 300 is configured tolearn about weather-related incidents and incorporate this informationinto flight plans, flying lanes, etc. for a safer, more efficient flightof the UAVs 50.

FIG. 35 is a flowchart of a UAV air traffic control management method2100 which provides real-time course corrections and route optimizationsbased on weather information. Again, the ATC system 300 operates tomanage UAVs 50 in a geographic region. In an embodiment, the ATC system300 can receive real-time weather updates. The UAV air traffic controlmanagement method 2100 incorporates weather updates for real-time coursecorrections and route optimization (over the wireless networks 302,304). The real-time course corrections and route optimization caninclude, for example: instructions to change direction, instructions tochange flying lane(s), instruction to land and where the drone shouldtarget for landing, full route modification with an emphasis on routeoptimization while avoiding the negative impact of the weather event,instructions to speed up or slow down, instructions to change altitude,instructions to hold position for a specific or indefinite time period,instructions to move to a safe position away from the weather event andeither hold in the air or on the ground for a specific or indefinitetime period, instructions to land very quickly, instructions to landvery slowly, instructions to circle, and the like.

The UAV air traffic control management method 2100 includes, in an airtraffic control system configured to manage Unmanned Aerial Vehicle(UAV) flight in a geographic region, communicating to one or more UAVsover one or more wireless networks, wherein the one or more UAVs areconfigured to constrain flight based on coverage of the one or morewireless networks (step 2102); receiving weather information related tothe geographic region (step 2104); analyzing the weather informationwith respect to a flight plan of the one or more UAVs (step 2106); andproviding changes to the flight plan based on the analyzing the weatherinformation, wherein the changes comprise one or more, of course,corrections and route optimization based on the weather information(step 2108).

The UAV can include an antenna communicatively coupled to the one ormore wireless networks, and wherein the flight is constrained based onthe antenna monitoring cell signal strength during the flight andadjusting the flight based therein whenever the cell signal strength islost or degraded.

The changes can include instructions to change direction, instructionsto change flying lane(s), instruction to land and where the drone shouldtarget for landing, full route modification with an emphasis on routeoptimization while avoiding the negative impact of the weather event,instructions to speed up or slow down, instructions to change altitude,instructions to hold position for a specific or indefinite time period,instructions to move to a safe position away from the weather event andeither hold in the air or on the ground for a specific or indefinitetime period, instructions to land very quickly, instructions to landvery slowly, instructions to circle, and the like.

Dynamic Flying Lane Management

FIG. 36 is a flowchart of a process 2200 for dynamic flying lanemanagement, such as based in part on FAA input, policies, and standards.Various aspects of flying lanes have been described herein. The process2200 includes, in an air traffic control system configured to manageUnmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flight in a geographic region,communicating to one or more UAVs via one or more wireless networks,wherein the one or more UAVs are configured to maintain their flight inthe geographic region based on coverage of or connectivity to the one ormore wireless networks (step 2202); obtaining input related to aplurality of flying lanes in the geographic region and weatherconditions in the geographic region (step 2204); determining theplurality of flying lanes based on the input and weather conditions(step 2206); and routing the one or more UAVs in the determinedplurality of flying lanes considering air traffic, congestion, andobstructions (step 2208).

The process 2200 can further include obtaining updated input related toa plurality of flying lanes in the geographic region and updated weatherconditions in the geographic region; updating the determined pluralityof flying lanes based on the updated input and the updated weatherconditions; and managing the one or more UAVs based on the updateddetermined plurality of flying lanes. The input can be obtained via aconnection to a database of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) data.The input can include restrictions for the plurality of flying lanesbased on other aircraft flight, airport locations, FAA policies, and FAAstandards. The process 2200 can further include receiving flight datafrom the one or more UAVs; and updating the air traffic, the congestion,and the obstructions based on the flight data.

The process 2200 can further include obtaining information related toground and air-based obstructions, and updating the determined pluralityof flying lanes based on the information related to ground and air-basedobstructions. The determined plurality of flying lanes can be furtherdetermined based on UAV flight restrictions and coverage of the one ormore wireless networks. The one or more UAVs can be routed tocorresponding flying lanes to maximize collision-free trajectories basedon static obstructions, minimize travel time, and manage congestion inthe geographic region. The plurality of flying lanes can include avariety of different types of lanes at different altitudes. The one ormore UAVs each can include an antenna communicatively coupled to the oneor more wireless networks, and wherein the flight is constrained basedon the antenna monitoring cell signal strength during the flight andadjusting the flight based therein whenever the cell signal strength islost or degraded.

In another embodiment, a drone air traffic control system includes aprocessor and a network interface communicatively coupled to oneanother; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: communicate to one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)via one or more wireless networks to manage UAV flight in a geographicregion, wherein the one or more UAVs are configured to maintain theirflight in the geographic region based on coverage of or connectivity tothe one or more wireless networks; obtain input related to a pluralityof flying lanes in the geographic region and weather conditions in thegeographic region; determine the plurality of flying lanes based on theinput and weather conditions; and route the one or more UAVs in thedetermined plurality of flying lanes considering air traffic,congestion, and obstructions.

ATC Zones/Boundaries

FIG. 37 is a map of north Charlotte illustrating zip codes. In anembodiment, drone air traffic control is performed by multiple ATCsystems 300 each handling a specific geographic region which is definedby boundaries such as zip codes. In another embodiment, the ATC system300 is a single system with multiple servers 200, which are distributedand handle the specific geographic region, which is defined byboundaries such as zip codes. Different components can communicate andcoordinate with one another for unified management of a largergeographic region, including hand-off of drone traffic between regions,congestion offloading between regions, and redundant monitoring ofadjacent regions.

FIG. 38 is a flowchart of a process 2300 for drone air traffic controlvia multiple ATC system utilizing zip codes or the like as geographicboundaries. The process 2300 includes, in an air traffic control systemconfigured to manage Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) flight in a pluralityof geographic regions, wherein the air traffic control system has one ormore servers configured to manage each geographic region which ispredetermined based on a geographic boundary, communicating to one ormore UAVs via one or more wireless networks, wherein the one or moreUAVs are configured to maintain their flight in the plurality ofgeographic regions based on coverage of or connectivity to the one ormore wireless networks (step 2302); obtaining data related to the one ormore UAVs, wherein the data includes flight operational data, flightplan data, and sensor data related to obstructions and other UAVs (step2304); analyzing and storing the data for each geographic region (step2306); and managing flight of the one or more UAVs in correspondinggeographic regions based on the data (step 2308).

The geographic boundary can be based on zip codes, county or townshipboundaries, geometric shapes, etc. The process 2300 can includecoordinating the data and the analyzing between servers which manageadjacent regions. The process 2300 can include determining a pluralityof flying lanes including lanes which are fully within a singlegeographic region and lanes which traverse a plurality of geographicregions and routing the one or more UAVs in corresponding flying lanes.The process 2300 can include handing off control of specific UAVsbetween servers based on transit in the lanes which traverse a pluralityof geographic regions. The one or more UAVs are routed to correspondingflying lanes to maximize collision-free trajectories based on staticobstructions, minimize travel time, and manage congestion in thegeographic region. The process 2300 can include receiving flight datafrom the one or more UAVs; and updating air traffic, congestion, andobstructions based on the flight data. The one or more UAVs each caninclude an antenna communicatively coupled to the one or more wirelessnetworks, and wherein the flight is constrained based on the antennamonitoring cell signal strength during the flight and adjusting theflight based therein whenever the cell signal strength is lost ordegraded.

In a further embodiment, a drone air traffic control system includes aprocessor and a network interface communicatively coupled to oneanother; and memory storing instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: communicate to one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)via one or more wireless networks to manage UAV flight in a geographicregion of a plurality of geographic regions, wherein the air trafficcontrol system has one or more servers configured to manage eachgeographic region which is predetermined based on a geographic boundary,wherein the one or more UAVs are configured to maintain their flight inthe plurality of geographic regions based on coverage of or connectivityto the one or more wireless networks; obtain data related to the one ormore UAVs, wherein the data includes flight operational data, flightplan data, and sensor data related to obstructions and other UAVs;analyze and storing the data for each geographic region; and manageflight of the one or more UAVs in corresponding geographic regions basedon the data.

Passenger Drones

The foregoing description describes the ATC system 300 with respect toUAVs 50. In addition to the UAV 50, which is unmanned, passenger dronesalso operate similar to UAVs 50. Passenger drones are similar to the UAV50 except include one or more passengers, i.e., the passenger drones arenot unmanned. Passenger drones are Manned Aerial Vehicles (MAV). Thesevehicles may be piloted by a person or more likely are automaticallyflown based on instructions from the ATC system 300. In an embodiment, apassenger drone is a single person, commuter vehicle. For example, apassenger drone may have an electric, gasoline, or hybrid engine,multiple rotors, e.g., 4, 6, or 8, a carbon fiber body, etc. Also, apassenger drone may fold, roll in/out of a garage, take off/landsubstantially vertical, etc.

Air traffic control of such passenger drones is similar to the airtraffic control systems and methods described herein relative to UAVs50. That is, it is expected that there will be orders of magnitude morepassenger drones than aircraft. Further, it is expected the passengerdrones will have automated flight plans to manage the volume, enablehumans to fly without having pilot licenses, provide a saferenvironment, etc. Passenger drones fly at similar levels as the UAVs 50,such as in Class E airspace, up to 1200′.

In various embodiments, the ATC system 300 can be configured to performthe various aspects described herein with respect to passenger drones,as well as with UAVs 50, or solely for passenger drones. That is, in oneembodiment, the ATC system 300 operates for passenger drones. In anotherembodiment, the ATC system 300 operates for the UAVs 50. In a furtherembodiment, the ATC system 300 operates for both passenger drones andUAVs 50.

FIG. 39 is a flowchart of an air traffic control method 2110 forpassenger drones. The air traffic control method 2110 includes, in anair traffic control system including one or more servers communicativelycoupled to one or more wireless networks, communicating with passengerdrones via one or more cell towers associated with the one or morewireless networks, wherein the passenger drones each include hardwareand antennas adapted to communicate to the one or more cell towers, andwherein each passenger drone has a unique identifier in the air trafficcontrol system (step 2112); obtaining data associated with the flight ofeach of the passenger drones based on the communicating (step 2114); andmanaging the flight of each of the passenger drones based on theobtained data and performance of one or more functions associated withair traffic control (step 2116), wherein each passenger drone isconfigured to constrain flight based on coverage of the one or more celltowers such that each passenger drone maintains communication on the oneor more wireless networks, wherein the control flight includes one ormore of pre-configuring the passenger drone to operate only where thecoverage exists, monitoring cell signal strength by the passenger droneand adjusting flight based therein, and a combination thereof.

The data associated with the flight of each of the passenger drones caninclude location, speed, direction, and altitude. The location can bedetermined based on a combination of triangulation by the one or morecell towers and a determination by the passenger drone based on alocation identification network. The plurality of functions can includeany of separation assurance between passenger drones, navigation,weather and obstacle reporting, monitoring, traffic management, landingservices, and real-time control. One or more of the passenger drones canbe configured for autonomous operations based on control by the airtraffic control system. The hardware and antennas for each of thepassenger drones can be configured to operate on a plurality ofdifferent cell networks. The air traffic control method 2110 can furtherinclude communicating with a one or more Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)in addition to the passenger drones; and managing flight of the one ormore UAVs in addition to managing flight of the passenger drones.

The one or more wireless networks can include a first wireless networkfor bidirectional communication between a passenger drone and the airtraffic control system and a second wireless network for unidirectionalcommunication to the passenger drone for status indications. The one ormore wireless networks can include a first wireless network and a secondwireless network each for bidirectional communication between apassenger drone and the air traffic control system for redundancy withone of the first wireless network and the second wireless networkoperating as primary and another as a backup. The air traffic controlmethod 2110 can further include providing a visualization via aGraphical User Interface (GUI); and performing one or more operationsvia the GUI for air traffic control and monitoring at any of ahigh-level and an individual drone level.

In another embodiment, an air traffic control system includes one ormore servers each including a processor, a network interfacecommunicatively coupled to one or more wireless networks, and memorystoring instructions that, when executed, cause the processor tocommunicate with passenger drones via one or more cell towers associatedwith the one or more wireless networks, wherein the passenger droneseach include hardware and antennas adapted to communicate to the one ormore cell towers, and wherein each passenger drone has a uniqueidentifier in the air traffic control system; obtain data associatedwith flight of each of the passenger drones based on communication witheach of the passenger drones; and manage the flight of each of thepassenger drones based on the obtained data and performance of one ormore functions associated with air traffic control, wherein eachpassenger drone is configured to constrain flight based on coverage ofthe one or more cell towers such that each passenger drone maintainscommunication on the one or more wireless networks, wherein the controlflight includes one or more of pre-configuring the passenger drone tooperate only where the coverage exists, monitoring cell signal strengthby the passenger drone and adjusting flight based therein, and acombination thereof.

Air Traffic Control Process for Passenger Drones Via a Plurality ofWireless Networks

FIG. 40 is a flowchart of an air traffic control method 2150,implemented in a passenger drone during a flight, for concurrentlyutilizing a plurality wireless networks for air traffic control. Themethod 2150 includes maintaining communication with a first wirelessnetwork and a second wireless network of the plurality of wirelessnetworks (step 2152); communicating first data with the first wirelessnetwork and second data with the second wireless network throughout theflight, wherein one or more of the first data and the second data isprovided to an air traffic control system configured to maintain statusof a plurality of passenger drones in flight and perform control thereof(step 2154); adjusting the flight based on one or more of the first dataand the second data and control from the air traffic control system(step 2156); and constraining the flight of the passenger drone based ona determined route from the air traffic control system provided via oneor more of the first wireless network and the second wireless network,wherein the constrained flight comprises maintaining the determinedroute, adjusting the determined route based on feedback from the airtraffic control system, proceeding on a last determined route responsiveto losing communication with the air traffic control system, andutilizing an alternate wireless network responsive to losing thecommunication (step 2158).

The first wireless network can provide bidirectional communicationbetween the passenger drone and the air traffic control system and thesecond wireless network can support unidirectional communication to thepassenger drone for status indications. The first wireless network caninclude one or more cellular networks, and the second wireless networkcan include a location identification network. Both the first wirelessnetwork and the second wireless network can provide bidirectionalcommunication between the passenger drone and the air traffic controlsystem for redundancy with one of the first wireless network and thesecond wireless network operating as primary and another as a backup.The first wireless network can provide bidirectional communicationbetween the passenger drone and the air traffic control system and thesecond wireless network can support unidirectional communication fromthe passenger drone for status indications.

The first data can include location, speed, direction, and altitude forreporting to the air traffic control system. The control from the airtraffic control system can include a plurality of functions comprisingone or more of separation assurance between passenger drones; navigationassistance; weather and obstacle reporting; monitoring of speed,altitude, location, and direction; traffic management; landing services;and real-time control. The passenger drone can be configured forautonomous operation through the air traffic control system. The airtraffic control system can be further configured to communicate andcontrol a plurality of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).

In another embodiment, a passenger drone configured for air trafficcontrol via an air traffic control system and via communication with aplurality of wireless networks includes a plurality of rotors disposedto a body; wireless interfaces comprising hardware and antennas adaptedto communicate with a first wireless network and a second wirelessnetwork of the plurality of wireless networks, and wherein the passengerdrone comprises a unique identifier; a processor coupled to the wirelessinterfaces and the one or more rotors; and memory storing instructionsthat, when executed, cause the processor to maintain communication withthe first wireless network and the second wireless network via thewireless interfaces; communicate first data with the first wirelessnetwork and second data with the second wireless network throughout theflight, wherein one or more of the first data and the second data isprovided to an air traffic control system configured to maintain thestatus of a plurality of passenger drones in flight and perform controlthereof; and adjust the flight based on one or more of the first dataand the second data and control from the air traffic control system,wherein the passenger drone is configured to constrain the flight basedon a determined route from the air traffic control system provided viaone or more of the first wireless network and the second wirelessnetwork, and wherein the constrained flight comprises maintaining thedetermined route, adjusting the determined route based on feedback fromthe air traffic control system, proceeding on a last determined routeresponsive to losing communication with the air traffic control system,and utilizing an alternate wireless network responsive to losing thecommunication.

In a further embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable mediumincludes instructions that, when executed, cause air traffic control ofa passenger drone during a flight to perform the steps of maintainingcommunication with a first wireless network and a second wirelessnetwork of a plurality of wireless networks; communicating first datawith the first wireless network and second data with the second wirelessnetwork throughout the flight, wherein one or more of the first data andthe second data is provided to an air traffic control system configuredto maintain status of a plurality of passenger drones in flight andperform control thereof; adjusting the flight based on one or more ofthe first data and the second data and control from the air trafficcontrol system; and constraining the flight of the passenger drone basedon coverage of one or more of the first wireless network and the secondwireless network, wherein the constrained flight comprises one or moreof pre-configuring the passenger drone to operate only where thecoverage exists, monitoring cell signal strength by the passenger droneand adjusting flight based therein, and a combination thereof.

Coverage

With the UAVs 50 and the passenger drones utilizing autonomous flightvia the ATC system 300, there is a need to maintain connectivitytherebetween. In an embodiment, the UAVs 50 and the passenger drones canbe configured to constrain flight such that there is always connectivityto the cell network 302. This can include one or more of pre-configuringthe passenger drone and/or UAV 50 to operate only where the coverageexists, monitoring cell signal strength by the passenger drone and/orUAV 50 and adjusting flight based therein, and a combination thereof.

However, practically, there still may be cases where coverage is lostsuch that the passenger drone and/or UAV 50 cannot communicate to theATC system 300. In an embodiment, the passenger drone and/or UAV 50 mayuse a secondary wireless network such as satellite. For example,satellite communications cost more than cellular as the frequency islimited. Thus, the passenger drone and/or UAV 50 may primarily use thecellular network with the satellite network as a backup when coverage islost on the cellular network.

In another embodiment, the ATC system 300 can provide a determinedroute, and the passenger drone and/or UAV 50 can maintain the lastdetermined route responsive to losing communication with the ATC system300, and utilize an alternate wireless network responsive to losing thecommunication. That is, operate autonomously with communicate maintainedbetween the passenger drone and/or UAV 50 and the ATC system 300.Responsive to losing communication and being unable to communicate on asecondary network, continue based on the last determined route.

Here, the ATC system 300 can expect that the passenger drone and/or UAV50 will continue to proceed as last instructed when the communication islost. Further, the ATC system 300 can estimate the passenger droneand/or UAV 50 based on wind speed and other factors at the time of thelast instructions.

Although the present disclosure has been illustrated and describedherein with reference to preferred embodiments and specific examplesthereof, it will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in theart that other embodiments and examples may perform similar functionsand/or achieve like results. All such equivalent embodiments andexamples are within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, arecontemplated thereby, and are intended to be covered by the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An obstruction detection and management methodcomprising: in an Air Traffic Control (ATC) system comprising one ormore servers communicatively coupled to a plurality of passenger dronesvia one or more wireless networks, receiving passenger drone data from aplurality of passenger drones, wherein the passenger drone datacomprises operational data for the plurality of passenger drones andobstruction data from one or more passenger drones; identifying whateach of the obstructions is based on identification data included in theobstruction data captured by the one or more passenger drones, theidentifying of the obstructions includes using pattern recognition toidentify a respective obstruction, and whether the obstruction is staticor dynamic, wherein an obstruction is additionally identified to be oneof the ground-based or air-based; determining a permanency of each ofthe obstructions based on an identity thereof, the permanency defining astatic obstruction as either temporary or permanent; updating anobstruction database based on the obstruction data, wherein theobstruction database comprises entries of obstructions with theirheight, size, location along with associated permanency flags comprisinga temporary flag indicating an obstruction as a temporary obstructionand a permanent flag indicating an obstruction as a permanentobstruction, and wherein updating the obstruction database includesclassifying each of the obstructions based on the determined permanencyand assigning a respective permanency flag thereto; monitoring a flightplan for the plurality of passenger drones based on the operationaldata; and transmitting obstruction instructions to the plurality ofpassenger drones based on analyzing the obstruction database with theirflight plan.
 2. The obstruction detection and management method of claim1, wherein the obstruction data comprises an indication of a potentialobstruction which was not provided to a passenger drone in theobstruction instructions.
 3. The obstruction detection and managementmethod of claim 1, wherein the obstruction data comprises a confirmationof an obstruction obtained based on a direction to obtain theconfirmation provided in the obstruction instructions, and wherein theupdating comprises noting any changes in the obstruction based on theconfirmation.
 4. The obstruction detection and management method ofclaim 1, wherein the obstruction instructions comprise a request to apassenger drone to perform data capture of a potential obstruction,wherein the obstruction data comprises photos and/or video of thepotential obstruction, and wherein the updating comprises identifyingthe potential obstruction based on the obstruction data.
 5. Theobstruction detection and management method of claim 1, wherein thepermanency flag in the obstruction database further comprises a Time ToRemove (TTR) value for the temporary obstruction which is a flag with aspecified time or a flag which requires removal if the next passengerdrone passing near the temporary obstruction fails to detect and reportit.
 6. The obstruction detection and management method of claim 1,wherein the operational data comprises a plurality of speed, location,heading, and altitude, and wherein the flight plan is determined fromthe operational data.
 7. A passenger drone air traffic control andmonitoring system for obstruction detection and management, the systemcomprising: a network interface and one or more processorscommunicatively coupled to one another, wherein the network interface iscommunicatively coupled to one or more wireless networks forcommunication with a plurality of passenger drones; and memory storinginstructions that, when executed, cause the one or more processors to:receive passenger drone data from the plurality of passenger drones,wherein the passenger drone data comprises operational data for theplurality of passenger drones and obstruction data from one or morepassenger drones; identify what each of the obstructions is based onidentification data included in the obstruction data captured by the oneor more passenger drones, the identifying of the obstructions includesusing pattern recognition to identify a respective obstruction, andwhether the obstruction is static or dynamic, wherein an obstruction isadditionally identified to be one of ground-based or air-based;determine a permanency of each of the obstructions based on an identitythereof, the permanency defining a static obstruction as eithertemporary or permanent; update an obstruction database based on theobstruction data, wherein the obstruction database comprises entries ofobstructions with their height, size, location along with associatedpermanency flags comprising a temporary flag identifying an obstructionas a temporary obstruction and a permanent flag identifying anobstruction as a permanent obstruction, and wherein updating theobstruction database includes classifying each of the obstructions basedon the determined permanency and assigning a respective permanency flagthereto; monitor a flight plan for the plurality of passenger dronesbased on the operational data; and transmit obstruction instructions tothe plurality of passenger drones based on analyzing the obstructiondatabase with their flight plan.
 8. The system of claim 7, wherein theobstruction data comprises an indication of a potential obstructionwhich was not provided to a passenger drone in the obstructioninstructions.
 9. The system of claim 7, wherein the obstruction datacomprises a confirmation of an obstruction obtained based on a directionto obtain the confirmation provided in the obstruction instructions, andwherein updates to the obstruction database comprise noting any changesin the obstruction based on the confirmation.
 10. The system of claim 7,wherein the obstruction instructions comprise a request to a passengerdrone to perform data capture of a potential obstruction, wherein theobstruction data comprises photos and/or video of the potentialobstruction, and wherein updates to the obstruction database compriseidentifying the potential obstruction based on the obstruction data. 11.The system of claim 7, wherein the permanency flag in the obstructiondatabase further comprises a Time To Remove (TTR) value for thetemporary obstruction which is a flag with a specified time or a flagwhich requires removal if the next passenger drone passing near thetemporary obstruction fails to detect and report it.
 12. The system ofclaim 7, wherein the operational data comprises a plurality of speed,location, heading, and altitude, and wherein the flight plan isdetermined from the operational data.
 13. A non-transitorycomputer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed,cause one or more processors, in an Air Traffic Control (ATC) systemcomprising one or more servers communicatively coupled to a plurality ofpassenger drones via one or more wireless networks, to perform steps of:receiving passenger drone data from a plurality of passenger drones,wherein the passenger drone data comprises operational data for theplurality of passenger drones and obstruction data from one or morepassenger drones; identifying what each of the obstructions is based onidentification data included in the obstruction data captured by the oneor more passenger drones, the identifying of the obstructions includesusing pattern recognition to identify a respective obstruction, andwhether the obstruction is static or dynamic, wherein an obstruction isadditionally identified to be one of ground-based or air-based;determining a permanency of each of the obstructions based on anidentity thereof, the permanency defining a static obstruction as eithertemporary or permanent; updating an obstruction database based on theobstruction data, wherein the obstruction database comprises entries ofobstructions with their height, size, location along with associatedpermanency flags comprising a temporary flag indicating an obstructionas a temporary obstruction or and a permanent flag indicating anobstruction as a permanent obstruction, and wherein updating theobstruction database includes classifying each of the obstructions basedon the determined permanency and assigning a respective permanency flagthereto; monitoring a flight plan for the plurality of passenger dronesbased on the operational data; and transmitting obstruction instructionsto the plurality of passenger drones based on analyzing the obstructiondatabase with their flight plan.
 14. The non-transitorycomputer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the obstruction datacomprises an indication of a potential obstruction which was notprovided to a passenger drone in the obstruction instructions.
 15. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein theobstruction data comprises a confirmation of an obstruction obtainedbased on a direction to obtain the confirmation provided in theobstruction instructions, and wherein the updating comprises noting anychanges in the obstruction based on the confirmation.
 16. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein theobstruction instructions comprise a request to a passenger drone toperform data capture of a potential obstruction, wherein the obstructiondata comprises photos and/or video of the potential obstruction, andwherein the updating comprises identifying the potential obstructionbased on the obstruction data.
 17. The non-transitory computer-readablemedium of claim 13, wherein the permanency flag in the obstructiondatabase further comprises a Time To Remove (TTR) value for thetemporary obstruction which is a flag with a specified time or a flagwhich requires removal if the next passenger drone passing near thetemporary obstruction fails to detect and report it.
 18. Thenon-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein theoperational data comprises a plurality of speed, location, heading, andaltitude, and wherein the flight plan is determined from the operationaldata.
 19. The obstruction detection and management method of claim 1,wherein, in response the identification data being insufficient toidentify the respective obstruction, instructing one of the plurality ofpassenger drones to obtain further identification data of the respectiveobstruction, and in response to a failure to identify the respectiveobstruction, initializing a human review of the identification data foridentification of the respective obstruction.
 20. The system of claim 7,wherein, in response the identification data being insufficient toidentify the respective obstruction, instructing one of the plurality ofpassenger drones to obtain further identification data of the respectiveobstruction, and in response to a failure to identify the respectiveobstruction, initializing a human review of the identification data foridentification of the respective obstruction.